Morgan Stanley Forecasts Strong Price Appreciation for DTE Energy (NYSE:DTE) Stock

DTE Energy (NYSE:DTE - Free Report) had its target price hoisted by Morgan Stanley from $131.00 to $136.00 in a research note published on Thursday morning,Benzinga reports. They currently have an overweight rating on the utilities provider's stock.

Other equities analysts have also issued reports about the stock. Guggenheim raised shares of DTE Energy from a "neutral" rating to a "buy" rating in a report on Thursday, January 23rd. BMO Capital Markets raised their target price on DTE Energy from $125.00 to $135.00 and gave the company a "market perform" rating in a report on Tuesday, February 18th. UBS Group raised DTE Energy from a "neutral" rating to a "buy" rating and boosted their price target for the stock from $129.00 to $143.00 in a report on Tuesday, December 3rd. StockNews.com upgraded DTE Energy from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Friday, February 21st. Finally, Scotiabank lifted their target price on DTE Energy from $137.00 to $147.00 and gave the company a "sector outperform" rating in a research report on Thursday, December 12th. Five equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eight have given a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, DTE Energy has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $138.58.

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DTE Energy Price Performance

Shares of DTE stock traded down $1.08 during trading on Thursday, hitting $136.03. The company had a trading volume of 1,125,024 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,092,203. The firm has a market capitalization of $28.23 billion, a P/E ratio of 20.09, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.41 and a beta of 0.59. DTE Energy has a one year low of $103.06 and a one year high of $138.22. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.77, a quick ratio of 0.46 and a current ratio of 0.71. The stock's 50-day moving average price is $127.74 and its 200 day moving average price is $124.95.

DTE Energy (NYSE:DTE - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Thursday, February 13th. The utilities provider reported $1.51 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $1.50 by $0.01. DTE Energy had a return on equity of 12.42% and a net margin of 11.27%. Equities analysts expect that DTE Energy will post 7.18 EPS for the current fiscal year.

DTE Energy Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, April 15th. Shareholders of record on Monday, March 17th will be given a $1.09 dividend. This represents a $4.36 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.21%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, March 17th. DTE Energy's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 64.40%.

Insider Activity

In other news, SVP Joann Chavez sold 7,062 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Monday, February 24th. The stock was sold at an average price of $132.40, for a total transaction of $935,008.80. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president now directly owns 14,067 shares in the company, valued at $1,862,470.80. This trade represents a 33.42 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, COO Matthew T. Paul sold 3,801 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, February 19th. The shares were sold at an average price of $129.56, for a total value of $492,457.56. Following the completion of the sale, the chief operating officer now owns 6,951 shares in the company, valued at $900,571.56. The trade was a 35.35 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last 90 days, insiders sold 11,877 shares of company stock valued at $1,559,205. Insiders own 0.61% of the company's stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On DTE Energy

A number of hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the company. SkyOak Wealth LLC grew its holdings in DTE Energy by 4.1% during the 4th quarter. SkyOak Wealth LLC now owns 2,174 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $262,000 after acquiring an additional 85 shares during the period. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC grew its stake in DTE Energy by 8.1% during the fourth quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 1,205 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $146,000 after purchasing an additional 90 shares during the period. Stratos Wealth Partners LTD. increased its holdings in DTE Energy by 4.5% in the fourth quarter. Stratos Wealth Partners LTD. now owns 2,139 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $258,000 after purchasing an additional 92 shares in the last quarter. Tidal Investments LLC lifted its stake in DTE Energy by 4.0% in the third quarter. Tidal Investments LLC now owns 2,490 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $320,000 after buying an additional 96 shares during the period. Finally, Bleakley Financial Group LLC lifted its stake in DTE Energy by 2.3% in the fourth quarter. Bleakley Financial Group LLC now owns 4,345 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $525,000 after buying an additional 96 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 76.06% of the company's stock.

DTE Energy Company Profile

DTE Energy Company engages in the utility operations. The company's Electric segment generates, purchases, distributes, and sells electricity to various residential, commercial, and industrial customers in southeastern Michigan. It generates electricity through coal-fired plants, hydroelectric pumped storage, and nuclear plants, as well as wind and solar assets.