Brokerages Set CMS Energy Co. (NYSE:CMS) Price Target at $71.00

Shares of CMS Energy Co. (NYSE:CMS - Get Free Report) have earned a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" from the fourteen brokerages that are covering the company, Marketbeat reports. Six research analysts have rated the stock with a hold recommendation and eight have issued a buy recommendation on the company. The average 12 month target price among brokerages that have updated their coverage on the stock in the last year is $71.00.

Several research firms have commented on CMS. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their target price on shares of CMS Energy from $70.00 to $77.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 16th. Mizuho cut shares of CMS Energy from an "outperform" rating to a "neutral" rating and decreased their price objective for the stock from $76.00 to $72.00 in a report on Tuesday, October 15th. Morgan Stanley cut their target price on CMS Energy from $69.00 to $67.00 and set an "equal weight" rating on the stock in a report on Friday, November 22nd. Barclays upped their price target on CMS Energy from $65.00 to $68.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a research note on Tuesday, October 15th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group began coverage on CMS Energy in a research note on Tuesday, November 5th. They issued a "buy" rating and a $76.00 price objective on the stock.

CMS Energy Stock Up 1.6 %

Shares of NYSE:CMS traded up $1.07 during midday trading on Monday, hitting $68.19. 3,448,904 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 2,207,311. The business's fifty day simple moving average is $66.84 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $67.79. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.86, a quick ratio of 0.83 and a current ratio of 1.23. CMS Energy has a 52-week low of $55.10 and a 52-week high of $72.40. The company has a market capitalization of $20.38 billion, a PE ratio of 19.48, a P/E/G ratio of 2.39 and a beta of 0.42.

CMS Energy (NYSE:CMS - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, February 6th. The utilities provider reported $0.87 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $0.86 by $0.01. CMS Energy had a return on equity of 12.81% and a net margin of 14.01%. As a group, research analysts predict that CMS Energy will post 3.33 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

CMS Energy Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, February 28th. Investors of record on Monday, February 17th will be paid a dividend of $0.5425 per share. This is a boost from CMS Energy's previous quarterly dividend of $0.52. This represents a $2.17 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.18%. CMS Energy's dividend payout ratio is presently 58.86%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other CMS Energy news, CAO Scott B. Mcintosh sold 936 shares of CMS Energy stock in a transaction on Thursday, November 21st. The shares were sold at an average price of $68.50, for a total transaction of $64,116.00. Following the sale, the chief accounting officer now owns 24,417 shares in the company, valued at $1,672,564.50. The trade was a 3.69 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Also, SVP Brandon J. Hofmeister sold 2,000 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Monday, November 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $68.17, for a total transaction of $136,340.00. Following the transaction, the senior vice president now directly owns 64,771 shares of the company's stock, valued at $4,415,439.07. The trade was a 3.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 33,686 shares of company stock worth $2,228,084 in the last ninety days. Insiders own 0.53% of the company's stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On CMS Energy

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of CMS. Inceptionr LLC acquired a new position in CMS Energy during the fourth quarter worth $1,191,000. Raymond James Financial Inc. bought a new stake in shares of CMS Energy in the 4th quarter worth about $24,481,000. Arizona State Retirement System increased its position in shares of CMS Energy by 1.4% during the 4th quarter. Arizona State Retirement System now owns 86,766 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $5,783,000 after purchasing an additional 1,208 shares in the last quarter. Aigen Investment Management LP bought a new position in CMS Energy during the 4th quarter valued at about $368,000. Finally, Proficio Capital Partners LLC acquired a new position in CMS Energy in the fourth quarter valued at about $4,938,000. Institutional investors own 93.57% of the company's stock.

About CMS Energy

CMS Energy Corporation operates as an energy company primarily in Michigan. The company operates through three segments: Electric Utility; Gas Utility; and Enterprises. The Electric Utility segment is involved in the generation, purchase, transmission, distribution, and sale of electricity. This segment generates electricity through coal, wind, gas, renewable energy, oil, and nuclear sources.