CMS Energy Co. (NYSE:CMS) Shares Acquired by Van ECK Associates Corp

Van ECK Associates Corp grew its position in CMS Energy Co. (NYSE:CMS - Free Report) by 12.7% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 92,899 shares of the utilities provider's stock after acquiring an additional 10,470 shares during the quarter. Van ECK Associates Corp's holdings in CMS Energy were worth $6,192,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Richardson Financial Services Inc. boosted its stake in CMS Energy by 106.8% during the 4th quarter. Richardson Financial Services Inc. now owns 455 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $30,000 after purchasing an additional 235 shares during the last quarter. First Horizon Advisors Inc. boosted its position in CMS Energy by 171.9% during the third quarter. First Horizon Advisors Inc. now owns 435 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $31,000 after acquiring an additional 275 shares during the last quarter. Brooklyn Investment Group purchased a new stake in CMS Energy during the 3rd quarter valued at about $40,000. Covestor Ltd raised its holdings in CMS Energy by 206.1% in the 3rd quarter. Covestor Ltd now owns 701 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $50,000 after acquiring an additional 472 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Values First Advisors Inc. acquired a new stake in CMS Energy in the 3rd quarter valued at about $56,000. 93.57% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

CMS Energy Stock Up 1.1 %

Shares of NYSE CMS traded up $0.79 during mid-day trading on Friday, hitting $71.49. The company had a trading volume of 2,150,636 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,197,472. The company has a market capitalization of $21.36 billion, a PE ratio of 21.53, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.54 and a beta of 0.42. The business's 50-day simple moving average is $67.14 and its 200 day simple moving average is $68.19. CMS Energy Co. has a 1-year low of $56.31 and a 1-year high of $72.40. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.80, a current ratio of 0.79 and a quick ratio of 0.57.

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 (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $0.86 by $0.01. CMS Energy had a return on equity of 12.02% and a net margin of 13.35%. On average, analysts predict that CMS Energy Co. will post 3.59 earnings per share for the current year.

CMS Energy Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, February 28th. Shareholders of record on Monday, February 17th will be given a $0.5425 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, February 14th. This is an increase from CMS Energy's previous quarterly dividend of $0.52. This represents a $2.17 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.04%. CMS Energy's dividend payout ratio is currently 65.36%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities research analysts have recently issued reports on CMS shares. Jefferies Financial Group began coverage on CMS Energy in a research report on Tuesday, November 5th. They issued a "buy" rating and a $76.00 price target for the company. Guggenheim restated a "neutral" rating and issued a $69.00 target price on shares of CMS Energy in a report on Friday, February 7th. BMO Capital Markets reduced their price target on CMS Energy from $77.00 to $76.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a report on Friday, November 1st. Barclays raised shares of CMS Energy from an "equal weight" rating to an "overweight" rating and upped their price objective for the company from $68.00 to $75.00 in a report on Thursday. Finally, Scotiabank raised their price objective on shares of CMS Energy from $75.00 to $77.00 and gave the stock a "sector outperform" rating in a research report on Thursday, December 12th. Six equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and nine have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $71.69.

Insider Activity

In related news, Director John G. Russell sold 28,750 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, December 19th. The stock was sold at an average price of $65.85, for a total value of $1,893,187.50. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now directly owns 144,059 shares of the company's stock, valued at $9,486,285.15. This represents a 16.64 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, SVP Brandon J. Hofmeister sold 2,000 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, December 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $67.22, for a total transaction of $134,440.00. Following the sale, the senior vice president now directly owns 63,197 shares in the company, valued at approximately $4,248,102.34. The trade was a 3.07 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last three months, insiders have sold 39,950 shares of company stock worth $2,669,620. 0.40% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

CMS Energy Company Profile

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.