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CMS Energy (CMS): analysis traps
Where its figures could mislead a reader, and what to check before taking them at face value · Data: Q3 2026, to Sep 30, 2026, filed Oct 27, 2026; rules v1.1
CMS Energy (CMS): 0 rules of 10 triggered on the filings to Sep 30, 2026. 1 to review; 4 with insufficient data; 2 not applicable. Each is a question to verify, with the normal explanation that would produce the same figures.
Check these first
A precise DCF value = the true value To review · confidence high
The DCF's point value is 49.27 a share (price 69.44); 67% of it is the terminal value, a number about years no one has seen. Moving wacc by ±1 pt alone takes it from 26.83 to 92.34; across every method the research ran the range is -4 to 247. The value is a range; the decimals are not information.
Innocent reading: A stable, mature business with a narrow range of outcomes, where the point value is a fair summary.
Every rule
A01 FCF growth = the business improved Insufficient data
fewer than two fiscal years with operating cash flow and capital expenditure on file
A07 Stock compensation added back = no economic cost Insufficient data
fewer than two fiscal years of stock compensation and share counts on file
B02 Receivables growing = future cash is certain Insufficient data
fewer than five quarters with receivables and revenue on file (a year-over-year comparison needs five)
B08 Adjusted profit = economic profit Insufficient data
no reconciliation table read from the releases yet and fewer than three quarters with both an adjusted and a GAAP EPS
C02 Low net debt = no refinancing risk Not triggered confidence medium
$950M comes due within a year, 2.9× covered by cash and investments of $451M plus $2.3B of free cash flow.
The figures and how they are read
| Cash and investments | $451M |
| Debt | $20.0B |
| Net debt | $19.6B |
| Due within a year | $950M |
| Read from | the debt maturity table |
| Free cash flow, twelve months | $2.3B |
| Cash plus free cash flow | $2.7B |
| Coverage of what is due | 2.9 |
| Due in the second year | $888M |
| Balance sheet date | 2026-09-30 |
due within a year from the maturity table (else the current portion of debt), against cash and investments plus free cash flow over the last twelve months (zero if negative); no credit lines assumed
Source: FY2025 (debt maturities, cash and investments)
D03 EPS growth = profit growth Not triggered confidence high
EPS fell 57% and net income fell 56% in Q3 2026; the share count rose 4.3%: EPS growth follows profit growth.
The figures and how they are read
| Quarter | Q3 2026 |
| Quarter before | Q3 2025 |
| EPS, year before | $0.92 |
| EPS | $0.39 |
| Net income, year before | $277M |
| Net income | $123M |
| Diluted shares, year before | 300.4M shares |
| Diluted shares | 313.2M shares |
| EPS growth | -57.4% |
| Net income growth | -55.6% |
| Diluted shares: change | +4.3% |
| eps from profit | -$0.51 |
| eps from share count | -$0.02 |
EPS and net income against the same quarter a year earlier; the EPS bridge attributes the change to profit first, then to the share count (the order is fixed and disclosed)
Source: Q3 2026 (net income, diluted shares, EPS) · Q3 2025 (the same quarter a year earlier)
E02 Low P/E at a cyclical peak = undervalued Not triggered confidence medium
Net income of $524M is not at a cyclical high against the last eight years (median $887M, best $1.4B): the P/E of 41.5× is on a normal year.
The figures and how they are read
| market value | $21.7B |
| net income ttm | $524M |
| pe ttm | 41.50 |
| net income median fy | $887M |
| pe mid cycle | 24.50 |
| net income peak fy | $1.4B |
| years | FY2018 / 657.0; FY2019 / 680.0; FY2020 / 755.0; FY2021 / 1353.0; FY2022 / 837.0; FY2023 / 887.0; FY2024 / 1003.0; FY2025 / 1071.0 |
| down years in window | 1 |
P/E on the trailing twelve months' net income against the P/E on the median net income of the last eight fiscal years (a mid-cycle stand-in); 'at a peak' = this year's profit at or above 90% of the best year and at least 1.3× the median
Source: Q3 2026 (net income, trailing twelve months)
E07 A precise DCF value = the true value To review confidence high
The DCF's point value is 49.27 a share (price 69.44); 67% of it is the terminal value, a number about years no one has seen. Moving wacc by ±1 pt alone takes it from 26.83 to 92.34; across every method the research ran the range is -4 to 247. The value is a range; the decimals are not information.
The figures and how they are read
| dcf value | 49.27 |
| price | 69.44 |
| terminal value share | +67.3% |
| swing by input | WACC / ±1 pt / 26.83 / 92.34; Revenue growth (each year) / ±5 pts / 28.39 / 74.12; Operating margin / ±3 pts / 29.05 / 69.49; Terminal growth / ±0.5 pt / 42.69 / 58.31 |
| range all methods | -3.73; 247.12 |
the DCF's point value against the share of it that is the terminal value and the value at each input moved by one step (growth ±5 pts, WACC ±1 pt, margin ±3 pts …); the range across every method the research ran
Source: 2026-11-08 (valuation research)
What would explain it innocently
- A stable, mature business with a narrow range of outcomes, where the point value is a fair summary
- The inputs that matter most are themselves well known (a regulated return, a long contract)
What to look for in the filing
- Which input you believe differs from the research's and why
- What the price implies for growth (the reverse DCF on the fair-value page)
What would show the trap does not apply
- The DCF's value is robust to the terminal growth and discount rate (the range's low end is still above the price)
- The company's cash flows over the next three years track the DCF's early years
Look again: next filing.
J06 A bank's low P/E and high profit = safe Not applicable
not a bank
J08 A REIT's low net income = the dividend is unsafe Not applicable
not a REIT
What the statuses mean
Triggered: the filings show the pattern; read the normal explanations and the missing evidence before concluding anything. To review: one quarter or a weak signal; a reader's judgement, not a pattern. Not triggered: the pattern is absent on these figures. Insufficient data: the filings read so far do not hold what the rule needs; this is not a clean bill. Not applicable: the rule is not meant for this kind of company (a bank's working capital, a loss-making quarter's EPS growth). Out of date: the latest filing is more than fifteen months old.
Severity is what the pattern could mean for cash, value or solvency; confidence is how reliable the inputs and the reading are. The two are kept apart.
Record a view
A reader's judgement, grounds, what would change it and the next review; kept in the browser (needs JavaScript).
Every rule and the companies it triggers on → CMS Energy: cash flow → Earnings quality score →
Each rule reads the company's own filings by a fixed formula and says what would explain the same figures innocently. A triggered rule is a question to verify, not a finding of manipulation, and not a view on the stock. Missing data is shown as missing, never as clear. Not investment advice.