COPT Defense Properties (NYSE:CDP) Trading 1.8% Higher Following Analyst Upgrade

COPT Defense Properties (NYSE:CDP)’s stock price traded up 1.8% on Wednesday after BTIG Research raised their price target on the stock from $33.00 to $38.00. BTIG Research currently has a buy rating on the stock. COPT Defense Properties traded as high as $33.36 and last traded at $33.29. 216,646 shares changed hands during trading, a decline of 75% from the average session volume of 872,138 shares. The stock had previously closed at $32.70.

A number of other research analysts also recently commented on the company. Wells Fargo & Company lowered their target price on COPT Defense Properties from $33.00 to $32.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, September 11th. Wedbush lifted their price objective on shares of COPT Defense Properties from $28.00 to $33.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Monday, August 5th. Truist Financial upped their target price on shares of COPT Defense Properties from $27.00 to $31.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research report on Thursday, August 29th. Evercore ISI upped their price objective on COPT Defense Properties from $33.00 to $36.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 30th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their target price on COPT Defense Properties from $26.00 to $31.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Wednesday, September 4th. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and five have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $31.75.

Insider Activity at COPT Defense Properties

In other COPT Defense Properties news, COO Britt A. Snider acquired 1,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, September 10th. The stock was bought 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 in the company, valued at $58,820. The trade was a 100.00 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The acquisition was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. 1.06% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On COPT Defense Properties

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of CDP. Quadrature Capital Ltd purchased a new stake in COPT Defense Properties during the first quarter valued at approximately $307,000. Lazard Asset Management LLC acquired a new stake in COPT Defense Properties in the first quarter worth about $102,000. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD purchased a new stake in shares of COPT Defense Properties during the first quarter worth about $1,702,000. Public Employees Retirement Association of Colorado acquired a new position in shares of COPT Defense Properties during the first quarter valued at about $230,000. Finally, Janus Henderson Group PLC purchased a new position in shares of COPT Defense Properties in the 1st quarter valued at approximately $1,255,000.

COPT Defense Properties Stock Up 0.4 %

The stock has a market capitalization of $3.70 billion, a PE ratio of 26.91 and a beta of 0.98. The company has a current ratio of 2.38, a quick ratio of 2.38 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.56. The company’s 50-day moving average is $31.52 and its 200 day moving average is $28.45.

COPT Defense Properties (NYSE:CDP) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Monday, October 28th. The company reported $0.32 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.64 by ($0.32). COPT Defense Properties had a net margin of 18.34% and a return on equity of 8.99%. The company had revenue of $189.23 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $167.37 million. During the same period last year, the firm earned $0.60 earnings per share. COPT Defense Properties’s quarterly revenue was up 12.3% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, analysts anticipate that COPT Defense Properties will post 2.57 EPS for the current year.

COPT Defense Properties Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, January 15th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, December 31st will be paid a $0.295 dividend. This represents a $1.18 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.59%. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, December 31st. COPT Defense Properties’s payout ratio is 96.72%.

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.