CMS vs. FTS: CMS Energy vs. Fortis Stock Comparison

November 11, 2026

How do CMS Energy (CMS) and Fortis (FTS) stack up? This page sets them side by side across company profile, performance and risk, profitability, growth, financial strength, dividends, and valuation, with selected fundamentals also measured against each stock's industry-group peers.

Company Profile

CMS Energy (CMS) and Fortis (FTS) both fall under the Utilities industry group, but CMS is classified in Multi-Utilities while FTS is classified in Electric Utilities.

Company profile comparison for CMS Energy (CMS) and Fortis (FTS)
Profile Item	CMS	FTS
Name	CMS Energy Corporation Common Stock	Fortis Inc.
Country/Region	United States	Canada
GICS Sector	Utilities	Utilities
GICS Industry Group	Utilities	Utilities
GICS Industry	Multi-Utilities	Electric Utilities
GICS Sub-Industry	Multi-Utilities	Electric Utilities
Market Capitalization	21.70 billion USD	31.00 billion USD
Currency	USD	USD
Exchange	NYSE	NYSE
Listing Date	February 21, 1973	January 5, 2010
Security Type	Common Stock	Common Stock

Price Performance

Cumulative Growth

CMS

FTS

GSPC

CMS Energy (CMS) vs. Fortis (FTS), with S&P 500 (GSPC) for reference: Growth of a $10,000 investment over the past five years. Adjusted for dividends and splits.

Trailing Returns

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Trailing total returns for CMS Energy (CMS) and Fortis (FTS). Returns over one year are annualized.

Calendar-Year Returns

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Calendar-year total returns for CMS Energy (CMS) and Fortis (FTS). Each bar is that year's total return, measured year-end to year-end.

Performance Metrics

Price performance metrics for CMS Energy (CMS) and Fortis (FTS)
Metric	CMS	FTS
Total Return (1Y)	-1.93%	19.13%
Total Return (3Y, Annualized)	11.79%	17.59%
Total Return (5Y, Annualized)	6.25%	9.53%

Risk Profile

Drawdown History

CMS

FTS

GSPC

CMS Energy (CMS) vs. Fortis (FTS), with S&P 500 (GSPC) for reference: Drawdown from the running peak over the past five years. Each line shows the decline from its prior peak; 0% marks a new high.

Return Distribution

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Distribution of monthly total returns for CMS Energy (CMS) and Fortis (FTS). Each bar is the share of months whose return fell in that 5% bucket.

Risk Metrics

Risk profile metrics for CMS Energy (CMS) and Fortis (FTS)
Metric	CMS	FTS
Volatility (1Y, Annualized)	17.58%	14.85%
Beta (5Y)	0.31	0.40
Max Drawdown (5Y)	-28.04%	-30.13%
Avg. Volume (3M)	3.84M	879.23K

Risk-Adjusted Performance

Risk-Return Positioning

CMS and FTS are plotted by 1-year volatility (risk) and 1-year return. The dashed Capital Allocation Line runs from the risk-free rate through the shared industry median.

Risk-Adjusted Metrics

Risk-adjusted metrics for CMS Energy (CMS) and Fortis (FTS)
Metric	CMS	FTS
Sharpe Ratio (1Y)	-0.35	1.00
Sortino Ratio (1Y)	-0.49	1.53

Profitability

ROE (TTM)

Both CMS Energy (CMS) at 5.31% and Fortis (FTS) at 7.55% produce bottom-quartile ROE versus peers, pointing to weaker profit generation on shareholders’ equity.

CMS

Utilities industry group

5.31%

Max: 17.99%
Q3: 12.01%
Median: 9.44%
Q1: 7.56%
CMS: 5.31%
Min: 2.17%

FTS

Utilities industry group

7.55%

Max: 17.99%
Q3: 12.01%
Median: 9.44%
Q1: 7.56%
FTS: 7.55%
Min: 2.17%

CMS Energy (CMS) vs. Fortis (FTS): A comparison of their ROE against the Utilities industry group benchmark.

Net Margin (TTM)

Both CMS Energy (CMS) at 9.72% and Fortis (FTS) at 15.01% keep about the typical share of revenue as profit for their industries — neither bottom line stands out from peers.

CMS

Utilities industry group

9.72%

Max: 28.78%
Q3: 17.30%
Median: 12.73%
CMS: 9.72%
Q1: 9.18%
Min: -0.20%

FTS

Utilities industry group

15.01%

Max: 28.78%
Q3: 17.30%
FTS: 15.01%
Median: 12.73%
Q1: 9.18%
Min: -0.20%

CMS Energy (CMS) vs. Fortis (FTS): A comparison of their net margin against the Utilities industry group benchmark.

Operating Margin (TTM)

Both CMS Energy (CMS) at 28.45% and Fortis (FTS) at 30.69% run core operations about as efficiently as their industries’ norm — neither stands out on operating profitability.

CMS

Utilities industry group

28.45%

Max: 53.83%
Q3: 31.12%
CMS: 28.45%
Median: 23.62%
Q1: 15.45%
Min: -4.90%

FTS

Utilities industry group

30.69%

Max: 53.83%
Q3: 31.12%
FTS: 30.69%
Median: 23.62%
Q1: 15.45%
Min: -4.90%

CMS Energy (CMS) vs. Fortis (FTS): A comparison of their operating margin against the Utilities industry group benchmark.

Profitability Metrics

Profitability metrics for CMS Energy (CMS) and Fortis (FTS)
Metric	CMS	FTS
ROE (TTM)	5.31%	7.55%
ROA (TTM)	3.07%	2.93%
Net Margin (TTM)	9.72%	15.01%
Operating Margin (TTM)	28.45%	30.69%
Gross Margin (TTM)	40.76%	45.52%

Growth

Revenue Growth

CMS Energy (CMS) at 13.63% sits in the top revenue growth quartile, while Fortis (FTS) at 5.75% is closer to the peer norm — faster top-line expansion for CMS.

CMS Energy (CMS) vs. Fortis (FTS): A comparison of their Revenue Growth across different time periods.

EPS Growth

Both CMS Energy (CMS) at 4.19% and Fortis (FTS) at 4.94% land near their industries' usual EPS growth ranges, so bottom-line momentum looks broadly in line with peers on both sides.

CMS Energy (CMS) vs. Fortis (FTS): A comparison of their EPS Growth across different time periods.

Growth Metrics

Growth metrics for CMS Energy (CMS) and Fortis (FTS)
Metric	CMS	FTS
Revenue Growth (YoY)	13.63%	5.75%
Revenue Growth (3Y CAGR)	-0.22%	3.29%
EPS Growth (YoY)	4.19%	4.94%
EPS Growth (3Y CAGR)	6.84%	6.94%

Financial Strength

Current Ratio (MRQ)

Both CMS Energy (CMS) at 0.95 and Fortis (FTS) at 0.69 carry current ratio within their industries’ typical mid-ranges, suggesting balanced short-term liquidity relative to peers.

CMS

Utilities industry group

0.95

Max: 1.90
Q3: 1.17
CMS: 0.95
Median: 0.88
Q1: 0.66
Min: 0.29

FTS

Utilities industry group

0.69

Max: 1.90
Q3: 1.17
Median: 0.88
FTS: 0.69
Q1: 0.66
Min: 0.29

CMS Energy (CMS) vs. Fortis (FTS): A comparison of their current ratio against the Utilities industry group benchmark.

Debt / Equity (MRQ)

Fortis (FTS) at 1.35 carries an industry-typical debt-to-equity mix, while CMS Energy (CMS) at 1.96 uses more debt funding than most peers.

CMS

Utilities industry group

1.96

Max: 2.63
CMS: 1.96
Q3: 1.77
Median: 1.35
Q1: 0.84
Min: 0.00

FTS

Utilities industry group

1.35

Max: 2.63
Q3: 1.77
FTS: 1.35
Median: 1.35
Q1: 0.84
Min: 0.00

CMS Energy (CMS) vs. Fortis (FTS): A comparison of their debt-to-equity ratio against the Utilities industry group benchmark.

Financial Strength Metrics

Financial strength metrics for CMS Energy (CMS) and Fortis (FTS)
Metric	CMS	FTS
Current Ratio (MRQ)	0.95	0.69
Debt / Equity (MRQ)	1.96	1.35
Net Debt / EBITDA	6.33	6.22

Dividends

Dividend Yield (TTM)

Fortis (FTS) at 4.18% delivers top-quartile income for its industry, while CMS Energy (CMS) at 3.21% pays a more typical yield — both are credible income propositions, FTS the richer one.

CMS

Utilities industry group

3.21%

Max: 6.66%
Q3: 3.58%
CMS: 3.21%
Median: 2.85%
Q1: 0.66%
Min: 0.00%

FTS

Utilities industry group

4.18%

Max: 6.66%
FTS: 4.18%
Q3: 3.58%
Median: 2.85%
Q1: 0.66%
Min: 0.00%

CMS Energy (CMS) vs. Fortis (FTS): A comparison of their dividend yield against the Utilities industry group benchmark.

Dividend Payout Ratio (TTM)

Both CMS Energy (CMS) at 80.45% and Fortis (FTS) at 72.73% pay out an above-typical share of earnings for their industries, leaving thinner cover if profits dip.

CMS

Utilities industry group

80.45%

Max: 113.04%
CMS: 80.45%
Q3: 68.72%
Median: 56.38%
Q1: 32.38%
Min: 0.00%

FTS

Utilities industry group

72.73%

Max: 113.04%
FTS: 72.73%
Q3: 68.72%
Median: 56.38%
Q1: 32.38%
Min: 0.00%

CMS Energy (CMS) vs. Fortis (FTS): A comparison of their payout ratio against the Utilities industry group benchmark.

Dividend Metrics

Dividend metrics for CMS Energy (CMS) and Fortis (FTS)
Metric	CMS	FTS
Dividend Yield (TTM)	3.21%	4.18%
Dividend Payout Ratio (TTM)	80.45%	72.73%

Valuation

P/E Ratio (TTM)

Both CMS Energy (CMS) at 24.71 and Fortis (FTS) at 23.66 sit in the richer earnings-multiple quartile for P/E ratio, so investors are paying more for TTM earnings than they pay for typical peers.

CMS

Utilities industry group

24.71

Max: 31.22
CMS: 24.71
Q3: 23.30
Median: 19.64
Q1: 15.17
Min: 3.34

FTS

Utilities industry group

23.66

Max: 31.22
FTS: 23.66
Q3: 23.30
Median: 19.64
Q1: 15.17
Min: 3.34

CMS Energy (CMS) vs. Fortis (FTS): A comparison of their P/E ratio against the Utilities industry group benchmark.

P/S Ratio (TTM)

On P/S ratio, both CMS Energy (CMS) at 2.42 and Fortis (FTS) at 2.47 are priced roughly in line with their industries — neither looks cheap nor rich on a sales basis.

CMS

Utilities industry group

2.42

Max: 6.35
Q3: 3.63
Median: 2.63
CMS: 2.42
Q1: 1.52
Min: 0.00

FTS

Utilities industry group

2.47

Max: 6.35
Q3: 3.63
Median: 2.63
FTS: 2.47
Q1: 1.52
Min: 0.00

CMS Energy (CMS) vs. Fortis (FTS): A comparison of their P/S ratio against the Utilities industry group benchmark.

P/B Ratio (MRQ)

Fortis (FTS) at 1.79 is valued about in line with its industry on P/B ratio, while CMS Energy (CMS) at 2.28 carries an above-peer premium to book — CMS is pricier on assets.

CMS

Utilities industry group

2.28

Max: 3.12
CMS: 2.28
Q3: 2.21
Median: 1.83
Q1: 1.46
Min: 0.34

FTS

Utilities industry group

1.79

Max: 3.12
Q3: 2.21
Median: 1.83
FTS: 1.79
Q1: 1.46
Min: 0.34

CMS Energy (CMS) vs. Fortis (FTS): A comparison of their P/B ratio against the Utilities industry group benchmark.

Valuation Metrics

Valuation metrics for CMS Energy (CMS) and Fortis (FTS)
Metric	CMS	FTS
P/E Ratio (TTM)	24.71	23.66
P/S Ratio (TTM)	2.42	2.47
P/B Ratio (MRQ)	2.28	1.79
Free Cash Flow Yield (TTM)	-9.54%	-9.42%