Natixis Advisors LLC Boosts Holdings in COPT Defense Properties (NYSE:CDP)

Key Points

• Natixis Advisors LLC increased its holdings in COPT Defense Properties by 8.4%, owning 285,366 shares worth approximately $7.78 million as of its latest SEC filing.
• COPT Defense Properties reported $0.68 earnings per share for the last quarter, exceeding estimates, with a revenue of $175.60 million which was below analyst expectations.
• The company announced a quarterly dividend of $0.305 per share, representing an annualized yield of 4.4%, with a relatively high dividend payout ratio of 95.31%.

Natixis Advisors LLC raised its holdings in shares of COPT Defense Properties (NYSE:CDP - Free Report) by 8.4% in the 1st quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 285,366 shares of the company's stock after acquiring an additional 22,016 shares during the quarter. Natixis Advisors LLC owned approximately 0.25% of COPT Defense Properties worth $7,782,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Several other hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in CDP. American Century Companies Inc. increased its holdings in COPT Defense Properties by 8.1% during the 4th quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 21,328 shares of the company's stock valued at $660,000 after acquiring an additional 1,590 shares in the last quarter. Prudential Financial Inc. boosted its stake in shares of COPT Defense Properties by 22.4% during the 4th quarter. Prudential Financial Inc. now owns 26,341 shares of the company's stock worth $815,000 after purchasing an additional 4,821 shares during the last quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. boosted its stake in shares of COPT Defense Properties by 357.8% during the 4th quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 84,789 shares of the company's stock worth $2,624,000 after purchasing an additional 66,270 shares during the last quarter. Landscape Capital Management L.L.C. acquired a new stake in shares of COPT Defense Properties during the 4th quarter worth about $204,000. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company MN boosted its stake in shares of COPT Defense Properties by 13.4% during the 4th quarter. Wells Fargo & Company MN now owns 250,123 shares of the company's stock worth $7,741,000 after purchasing an additional 29,535 shares during the last quarter.

Insider Activity

In related news, Director Robert L. Denton sold 4,398 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, May 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $26.70, for a total value of $117,426.60. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Corporate insiders own 1.42% of the company's stock.

COPT Defense Properties Price Performance

CDP opened at $27.84 on Tuesday. The company's 50 day simple moving average is $28.04 and its 200 day simple moving average is $27.49. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.58, a quick ratio of 2.96 and a current ratio of 2.96. COPT Defense Properties has a 1 year low of $23.92 and a 1 year high of $34.22. The stock has a market capitalization of $3.14 billion, a PE ratio of 21.75 and a beta of 0.87.

COPT Defense Properties (NYSE:CDP - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Monday, July 28th. The company reported $0.68 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate 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 business had revenue of $175.60 million for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $186.55 million. During the same period last year, the company earned $0.64 earnings per share. The company's quarterly revenue was up 1.4% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, sell-side analysts expect that COPT Defense Properties will post 2.67 EPS for the current year.

COPT Defense Properties Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, July 16th. Investors of record on Monday, June 30th were given a $0.305 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, June 30th. This represents a $1.22 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 4.4%. COPT Defense Properties's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 95.31%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Separately, Wells Fargo & Company decreased their price target on shares of 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 investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and five have assigned a buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat, COPT Defense Properties presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $33.14.

About COPT Defense Properties

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.

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