COPT Defense Properties (NYSE:CDP) Trading 0.2% Higher – Still a Buy?

COPT Defense Properties (NYSE:CDP)’s share price was up 0.2% on Tuesday . The stock traded as high as $32.51 and last traded at $32.45. Approximately 88,961 shares traded hands during mid-day trading, a decline of 90% from the average daily volume of 877,377 shares. The stock had previously closed at $32.40.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research analysts have recently issued reports on CDP shares. Wedbush raised their price objective on COPT Defense Properties from $28.00 to $33.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Monday, August 5th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their price target on COPT Defense Properties from $26.00 to $31.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Wednesday, September 4th. Evercore ISI boosted 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. BTIG Research increased their price objective on COPT Defense Properties from $33.00 to $38.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, November 27th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company decreased their target price on shares of COPT Defense Properties from $33.00 to $32.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, September 11th. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and five have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $31.75.

COPT Defense Properties Stock Down 0.5 %

The company has a 50 day moving average price of $31.58 and a 200-day moving average price of $28.56. The stock has a market capitalization of $3.63 billion, a PE 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.

COPT Defense Properties (NYSE:CDP) last issued its quarterly earnings data 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 last year, the company posted $0.60 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 12.3% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, analysts forecast that COPT Defense Properties will post 2.57 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

COPT Defense Properties Announces Dividend

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

Insider Transactions at COPT Defense Properties

In related news, COO Britt A. Snider bought 1,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Tuesday, September 10th. The shares were acquired at an average price of $29.41 per share, for a total transaction of $29,410.00. Following the purchase, the chief operating officer now owns 2,000 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $58,820. The trade was a 100.00 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Corporate insiders own 1.06% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Spirit of America Management Corp NY purchased a new stake in COPT Defense Properties in the second quarter worth approximately $50,000. Quarry LP lifted its holdings in shares of COPT Defense Properties by 711.4% during the 2nd quarter. Quarry LP now owns 3,481 shares of the company’s stock valued at $87,000 after buying an additional 3,052 shares during the period. Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB purchased a new position in shares of COPT Defense Properties in the 3rd quarter worth $91,000. KBC Group NV grew its holdings in shares of COPT Defense Properties by 28.3% in the third quarter. KBC Group NV now owns 3,810 shares of the company’s stock worth $116,000 after acquiring an additional 840 shares during the period. Finally, Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. increased its position in COPT Defense Properties by 34.9% during the third quarter. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. now owns 4,372 shares of the company’s stock valued at $134,000 after acquiring 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.