Jennison Associates LLC Acquires 28,160 Shares of COPT Defense Properties (NYSE:CDP)

Jennison Associates LLC boosted its stake in COPT Defense Properties (NYSE:CDP - Free Report) by 58.9% during the first quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 75,997 shares of the company's stock after purchasing an additional 28,160 shares during the period. Jennison Associates LLC owned about 0.07% of COPT Defense Properties worth $2,072,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other large investors have also bought and sold shares of the company. UMB Bank n.a. increased its stake in shares of COPT Defense Properties by 321.7% during the first quarter. UMB Bank n.a. now owns 1,071 shares of the company's stock valued at $29,000 after buying an additional 817 shares during the period. GF Fund Management CO. LTD. purchased a new position in shares of COPT Defense Properties during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $63,000. FIL Ltd increased its stake in shares of COPT Defense Properties by 17.8% during the fourth quarter. FIL Ltd now owns 2,591 shares of the company's stock valued at $80,000 after buying an additional 391 shares during the period. Meeder Asset Management Inc. purchased a new position in shares of COPT Defense Properties during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $110,000. Finally, Central Pacific Bank Trust Division increased its stake in shares of COPT Defense Properties by 10.7% during the first quarter. Central Pacific Bank Trust Division now owns 6,854 shares of the company's stock valued at $187,000 after buying an additional 660 shares during the period.

COPT Defense Properties Stock Up 0.6%

Shares of NYSE CDP traded up $0.17 during mid-day trading on Friday, hitting $27.99. 493,804 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 744,942. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.57, a quick ratio of 3.21 and a current ratio of 3.21. COPT Defense Properties has a 52 week low of $23.92 and a 52 week high of $34.22. The company has a market cap of $3.16 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 22.39 and a beta of 0.87. The stock has a fifty day moving average price of $27.99 and a 200-day moving average price of $27.60.

COPT Defense Properties (NYSE:CDP - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Monday, April 28th. The company reported $0.65 EPS for the quarter, hitting the consensus estimate of $0.65. COPT Defense Properties had a return on equity of 9.19% and a net margin of 18.86%. The business had revenue of $187.86 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $186.37 million. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $0.62 earnings per share. The company's revenue for the quarter was up 6.0% compared to the same quarter last year. Research analysts anticipate that COPT Defense Properties will post 2.67 EPS for the current year.

COPT Defense Properties Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, July 16th. Shareholders of record on Monday, June 30th were issued a $0.305 dividend. This represents a $1.22 annualized dividend and a yield of 4.36%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, June 30th. COPT Defense Properties's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 97.60%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other COPT Defense Properties news, Director Robert L. Denton sold 4,398 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Thursday, May 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $26.70, for a total value of $117,426.60. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Company insiders own 1.42% of the company's stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Separately, Wells Fargo & Company reduced their target price on COPT Defense Properties from $36.00 to $30.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, May 19th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and five have assigned a buy rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $33.14.

COPT Defense Properties 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.