SG Americas Securities LLC Decreases Holdings in COPT Defense Properties (NYSE:CDP)

SG Americas Securities LLC cut its stake in shares of COPT Defense Properties (NYSE:CDP - Free Report) by 73.6% during the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 9,669 shares of the company's stock after selling 27,009 shares during the quarter. SG Americas Securities LLC's holdings in COPT Defense Properties were worth $293,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other large investors have also made changes to their positions in the company. Vanguard Group Inc. purchased a new stake in COPT Defense Properties during the first quarter worth $407,496,000. Earnest Partners LLC acquired a new position in shares of COPT Defense Properties during the 1st quarter worth $129,344,000. Westwood Holdings Group Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of COPT Defense Properties in the 1st quarter worth about $90,045,000. Millennium Management LLC grew its stake in COPT Defense Properties by 65.3% in the 2nd quarter. Millennium Management LLC now owns 3,274,008 shares of the company's stock valued at $81,948,000 after acquiring an additional 1,293,761 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Sei Investments Co. increased its holdings in COPT Defense Properties by 9.6% during the 2nd quarter. Sei Investments Co. now owns 1,983,526 shares of the company's stock valued at $49,648,000 after acquiring an additional 174,206 shares in the last quarter.

COPT Defense Properties Trading Down 1.4 %

NYSE:CDP traded down $0.46 during mid-day trading on Monday, reaching $31.90. The company's stock had a trading volume of 479,382 shares, compared to its average volume of 836,785. COPT Defense Properties has a twelve month low of $22.20 and a twelve month high of $32.51. The company's fifty day simple moving average is $30.13 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $26.88. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.56, a current ratio of 3.17 and a quick ratio of 3.17. The stock has a market cap of $3.59 billion, a P/E ratio of -29.54 and a beta of 0.99.

COPT Defense Properties (NYSE:CDP - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Monday, July 29th. The company reported $0.31 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $0.64 by ($0.33). The company had revenue of $187.34 million during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $166.11 million. COPT Defense Properties had a negative net margin of 15.75% and a negative return on equity of 7.52%. COPT Defense Properties's revenue for the quarter was up 10.7% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $0.60 earnings per share. On average, equities analysts predict that COPT Defense Properties will post 2.57 EPS for the current year.

COPT Defense Properties Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, October 17th. Investors of record on Monday, September 30th were given a $0.295 dividend. This represents a $1.18 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.70%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, September 30th. COPT Defense Properties's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently -109.26%.

Insider Activity at COPT Defense Properties

In other news, COO Britt A. Snider purchased 1,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Tuesday, September 10th. The stock was bought at an average cost of $29.41 per share, for a total transaction of $29,410.00. Following the completion of the purchase, the chief operating officer now directly owns 2,000 shares of the company's stock, valued at $58,820. The trade was a 100.00 % increase in their position. The purchase was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. 1.06% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

CDP has been the topic of several research reports. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their price target on shares of COPT Defense Properties from $26.00 to $31.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research report on Wednesday, September 4th. Truist Financial boosted their price target on 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 decreased their price objective on COPT Defense Properties from $33.00 to $32.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, September 11th. Evercore ISI lifted their price objective on COPT Defense Properties from $28.00 to $33.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 31st. Finally, Wedbush upped their target price on shares of COPT Defense Properties from $28.00 to $33.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a report on Monday, August 5th. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and five have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $30.00.

COPT Defense Properties Profile

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.