Analysts Set COPT Defense Properties (NYSE:CDP) PT at $33.14

Key Points

• COPT Defense Properties (NYSE: CDP) has been given a consensus recommendation of "Moderate Buy" by seven research firms, with an average 12-month price target of $33.14.
• The company reported $0.68 earnings per share, slightly surpassing analysts' expectations, and quarterly revenue increased by 1.4% year-over-year.
• COPT Defense Properties announced a quarterly dividend of $0.305 per share, yielding approximately 4.41% with a high payout ratio of 97.60%.

COPT Defense Properties (NYSE:CDP - Get Free Report) has earned a consensus recommendation of "Moderate Buy" from the seven analysts that are currently covering the stock, Marketbeat reports. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and five have assigned a buy rating to the company. The average 1-year target price among brokerages that have covered the stock in the last year is $33.14.

Separately, Wells Fargo & Company reduced their price objective on COPT Defense Properties from $36.00 to $30.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a research note on Monday, May 19th.

COPT Defense Properties Trading Down 0.1%

NYSE:CDP traded down $0.03 during midday trading on Wednesday, hitting $27.25. 971,942 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 956,597. COPT Defense Properties has a 12-month low of $23.92 and a 12-month high of $34.22. The company has a current ratio of 2.96, a quick ratio of 3.21 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.58. The firm has a market capitalization of $3.08 billion, a P/E ratio of 21.29 and a beta of 0.87. The firm's fifty day moving average is $28.02 and its 200-day moving average is $27.55.

COPT Defense Properties (NYSE:CDP - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Monday, July 28th. The company reported $0.68 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $0.67 by $0.01. COPT Defense Properties had a net margin of 19.23% and a return on equity of 9.38%. The firm had revenue of $175.60 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $186.55 million. During the same period last year, the firm earned $0.64 earnings per share. The company's quarterly revenue was up 1.4% on a year-over-year basis. On average, sell-side analysts predict that COPT Defense Properties will post 2.67 EPS for the current year.

COPT Defense Properties Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, July 16th. Shareholders of record on Monday, June 30th were paid a $0.305 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Monday, June 30th. This represents a $1.22 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 4.5%. COPT Defense Properties's payout ratio is currently 95.31%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other COPT Defense Properties news, Director Robert L. Denton sold 4,398 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Thursday, May 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $26.70, for a total transaction of $117,426.60. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Insiders own 1.42% of the company's stock.

Institutional Trading of COPT Defense Properties

A number of institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the company. Alliancebernstein L.P. grew its stake in COPT Defense Properties by 9.4% in the 1st quarter. Alliancebernstein L.P. now owns 6,834,820 shares of the company's stock worth $186,386,000 after acquiring an additional 586,966 shares during the period. Earnest Partners LLC lifted its position in COPT Defense Properties by 1.9% during the 4th quarter. Earnest Partners LLC now owns 4,795,639 shares of the company's stock worth $148,425,000 after acquiring an additional 89,571 shares in the last quarter. Westwood Holdings Group Inc. lifted its position in COPT Defense Properties by 25.7% during the 1st quarter. Westwood Holdings Group Inc. now owns 3,627,108 shares of the company's stock worth $98,911,000 after acquiring an additional 741,765 shares in the last quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted its holdings in COPT Defense Properties by 21.9% in the fourth quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 3,283,383 shares of the company's stock valued at $101,621,000 after purchasing an additional 590,051 shares during the last quarter. Finally, FMR LLC boosted its holdings in COPT Defense Properties by 12.2% in the fourth quarter. FMR LLC now owns 3,099,052 shares of the company's stock valued at $95,916,000 after purchasing an additional 335,775 shares during the last quarter.

COPT Defense Properties Company Profile

COPT Defense Properties is a real estate investment trust. It acquires, develops, manages, sells, and leases out office properties and data centers. The firm operates through the following segments: Defense/Information Technology Locations, Regional Office, Wholesale Data Center, and Other. The company was founded on January 22,1988 and is headquartered in Columbia, MD.