Short Interest in COPT Defense Properties (NYSE:CDP) Declines By 12.8%

COPT Defense Properties (NYSE:CDP) was the target of a large decline in short interest in March. As of March 15th, there was short interest totalling 5,300,000 shares, a decline of 12.8% from the February 28th total of 6,080,000 shares. Based on an average trading volume of 1,020,000 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is currently 5.2 days. Currently, 4.7% of the company’s stock are sold short.

COPT Defense Properties Trading Down 1.9 %

COPT Defense Properties stock traded down $0.53 during midday trading on Thursday, reaching $27.07. The stock had a trading volume of 251,710 shares, compared to its average volume of 910,700. The firm has a market cap of $3.05 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 22.01 and a beta of 0.96. The firm’s fifty day simple moving average is $27.70 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $30.03. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.56, a current ratio of 2.47 and a quick ratio of 2.38. COPT Defense Properties has a twelve month low of $22.20 and a twelve month high of $34.22.

COPT Defense Properties (NYSE:CDP) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, February 6th. The company reported $0.65 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.32 by $0.33. COPT Defense Properties had a return on equity of 9.07% and a net margin of 18.44%. Equities analysts anticipate that COPT Defense Properties will post 2.67 EPS for the current fiscal year.

COPT Defense Properties Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, April 16th. Stockholders of record on Monday, March 31st will be given a $0.305 dividend. This represents a $1.22 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 4.51%. This is a boost from COPT Defense Properties’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.30. The ex-dividend date is Monday, March 31st. COPT Defense Properties’s dividend payout ratio is currently 99.19%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

CDP has been the subject of several recent research reports. Truist Financial increased their price target on COPT Defense Properties from $31.00 to $33.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a report on Wednesday, December 4th. Jefferies Financial Group began coverage on COPT Defense Properties in a report on Monday, March 17th. They set a “buy” rating and a $31.00 target price on the stock. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and five have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $33.43.

Institutional Trading of COPT Defense Properties

A number of hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of CDP. Alliancebernstein L.P. raised its stake in shares of COPT Defense Properties by 813.0% in the fourth quarter. Alliancebernstein L.P. now owns 6,247,854 shares of the company’s stock valued at $193,371,000 after acquiring an additional 5,563,548 shares during the last quarter. Earnest Partners LLC lifted its holdings in shares of COPT Defense Properties by 1.9% during the 4th quarter. Earnest Partners LLC now owns 4,795,639 shares of the company’s stock valued at $148,425,000 after purchasing an additional 89,571 shares in the last quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted its stake in COPT Defense Properties by 21.9% in the 4th quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 3,283,383 shares of the company’s stock worth $101,621,000 after purchasing an additional 590,051 shares during the period. FMR LLC boosted its position in COPT Defense Properties by 12.2% during the 4th quarter. FMR LLC now owns 3,099,052 shares of the company’s stock worth $95,916,000 after acquiring an additional 335,775 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Geode Capital Management LLC increased its position in shares of COPT Defense Properties by 0.7% in the third quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 2,927,208 shares of the company’s stock valued at $88,797,000 after acquiring an additional 21,388 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.