COPT Defense Properties (NYSE:CDP) Trading Up 0.2% – Here’s Why

COPT Defense Properties (NYSE:CDP) shares shot up 0.2% on Tuesday . The stock traded as high as $32.51 and last traded at $32.45. 88,961 shares changed hands during trading, a decline of 90% from the average session volume of 877,377 shares. The stock had previously closed at $32.40.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities research analysts recently weighed in on CDP shares. BTIG Research upped their target price on shares of COPT Defense Properties from $33.00 to $38.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, November 27th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their price target on COPT Defense Properties from $26.00 to $31.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Wednesday, September 4th. Truist Financial raised their price objective on COPT Defense Properties from $27.00 to $31.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research note on Thursday, August 29th. Evercore ISI upped their target price on shares of COPT Defense Properties from $33.00 to $36.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 30th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company dropped their price target on shares of COPT Defense Properties from $33.00 to $32.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, September 11th. Three analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and five have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $31.75.

COPT Defense Properties Stock Down 0.5 %

The stock has a market capitalization of $3.63 billion, a P/E ratio of 26.60 and a beta of 0.98. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.56, a current ratio of 2.38 and a quick ratio of 2.38. The stock has a fifty day moving average price of $31.58 and a 200 day moving average price of $28.56.

COPT Defense Properties (NYSE:CDP) last issued its earnings results on Monday, October 28th. The company reported $0.32 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.64 by ($0.32). COPT Defense Properties had a return on equity of 8.99% and a net margin of 18.34%. The company had revenue of $189.23 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $167.37 million. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned $0.60 EPS. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 12.3% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, research analysts forecast that COPT Defense Properties will post 2.57 earnings per share for the current year.

COPT Defense Properties Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, January 15th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, December 31st will be paid a $0.295 dividend. This represents a $1.18 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.66%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, December 31st. COPT Defense Properties’s dividend payout ratio is presently 96.72%.

Insider Activity

In related news, COO Britt A. Snider bought 1,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, September 10th. The shares were acquired at an average cost of $29.41 per share, with a total value of $29,410.00. Following the completion of the purchase, the chief operating officer now directly owns 2,000 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $58,820. This trade represents a 100.00 % increase in their position. The acquisition was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Company insiders own 1.06% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On COPT Defense Properties

A number of institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in CDP. Spirit of America Management Corp NY purchased a new position in COPT Defense Properties in the second quarter worth $50,000. Quarry LP boosted its holdings in shares of COPT Defense Properties by 711.4% in the 2nd quarter. Quarry LP now owns 3,481 shares of the company’s stock worth $87,000 after purchasing an additional 3,052 shares in the last quarter. Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB bought a new position in shares of COPT Defense Properties during the 3rd quarter valued at about $91,000. KBC Group NV raised its holdings in shares of COPT Defense Properties by 28.3% during the 3rd quarter. KBC Group NV now owns 3,810 shares of the company’s stock valued at $116,000 after buying an additional 840 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. lifted its position in COPT Defense Properties by 34.9% in the 3rd quarter. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. now owns 4,372 shares of the company’s stock worth $134,000 after buying an additional 1,130 shares during the last quarter.

About COPT Defense Properties

COPT Defense, an S&P MidCap 400 Company, is a self-managed REIT focused on owning, operating and developing properties in locations proximate to, or sometimes containing, key U.S. Government (USG) defense installations and missions (referred to as its Defense/IT Portfolio). The Company's tenants include the USG and their defense contractors, who are primarily engaged in priority national security activities, and who generally require mission-critical and high security property enhancements.