COPT Defense Properties (NYSE:CDP) Stock Price Down 0.4% - Time to Sell?

COPT Defense Properties (NYSE:CDP - Get Free Report) was down 0.4% during mid-day trading on Monday . The stock traded as low as $32.74 and last traded at $32.83. Approximately 685,918 shares changed hands during mid-day trading, a decline of 22% from the average daily volume of 875,012 shares. The stock had previously closed at $32.95.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several analysts have issued reports on CDP shares. BTIG Research raised their price target on shares of COPT Defense Properties from $33.00 to $38.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Wednesday, November 27th. Truist Financial raised their price objective on shares of COPT Defense Properties from $27.00 to $31.00 and gave the stock a "hold" rating in a report on Thursday, August 29th. Wells Fargo & Company reduced their price objective on shares of COPT Defense Properties from $33.00 to $32.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, September 11th. Wedbush raised their price objective on shares of COPT Defense Properties from $28.00 to $33.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a report on Monday, August 5th. Finally, Evercore ISI lifted their price target on shares of COPT Defense Properties from $33.00 to $36.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a report on Wednesday, October 30th. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and five have given a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $31.75.

COPT Defense Properties Stock Performance

The company has a market capitalization of $3.64 billion, a P/E ratio of 26.91 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. The stock's 50 day simple moving average is $31.58 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $28.56.

COPT Defense Properties (NYSE:CDP - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results 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 business had revenue of $189.23 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $167.37 million. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $0.60 EPS. The firm's quarterly revenue was up 12.3% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, research analysts expect that COPT Defense Properties will post 2.57 earnings per share for the current year.

COPT Defense Properties Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, January 15th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, December 31st will be given a dividend of $0.295 per share. This represents a $1.18 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.65%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, December 31st. COPT Defense Properties's dividend payout ratio is 96.72%.

Insider Transactions at COPT Defense Properties

In other news, COO Britt A. Snider acquired 1,000 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, September 10th. The stock was purchased at an average price of $29.41 per share, for a total transaction of $29,410.00. Following the completion of the acquisition, the chief operating officer now owns 2,000 shares in the company, valued at $58,820. This trade represents a 100.00 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. 1.06% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of CDP. Lazard Asset Management LLC acquired a new position in COPT Defense Properties during the first quarter valued at approximately $102,000. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD acquired a new position in shares of COPT Defense Properties in the first quarter valued at approximately $1,702,000. Public Employees Retirement Association of Colorado acquired a new position in shares of COPT Defense Properties in the first quarter valued at approximately $230,000. Janus Henderson Group PLC acquired a new position in shares of COPT Defense Properties in the first quarter valued at approximately $1,255,000. Finally, California State Teachers Retirement System acquired a new position in shares of COPT Defense Properties in the first quarter valued at approximately $2,721,000.

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.

This instant news alert was generated by narrative science technology and financial data from MarketBeat in order to provide readers with the fastest and most accurate reporting. This story was reviewed by MarketBeat's editorial team prior to publication. Please send any questions or comments about this story to contact@marketbeat.com.