Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. Raises Position in COPT Defense Properties (NYSE:CDP)

Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. increased its holdings in COPT Defense Properties (NYSE:CDP) by 0.7% in the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 2,522,955 shares of the company’s stock after purchasing an additional 18,770 shares during the period. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. owned 2.24% of COPT Defense Properties worth $76,521,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Spirit of America Management Corp NY acquired a new position in shares of COPT Defense Properties during the 2nd quarter valued at about $50,000. Quarry LP increased its position in COPT Defense Properties by 711.4% during the second quarter. Quarry LP now owns 3,481 shares of the company’s stock worth $87,000 after purchasing an additional 3,052 shares during the last quarter. Lazard Asset Management LLC acquired a new position in COPT Defense Properties during the first quarter worth approximately $102,000. KBC Group NV raised its stake in COPT Defense Properties by 28.3% during the third quarter. KBC Group NV now owns 3,810 shares of the company’s stock worth $116,000 after purchasing an additional 840 shares during the period. Finally, Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. boosted its holdings in shares of COPT Defense Properties by 34.9% in the 3rd quarter. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. now owns 4,372 shares of the company’s stock valued at $134,000 after purchasing an additional 1,130 shares during the last quarter.

COPT Defense Properties Stock Performance

COPT Defense Properties stock opened at $32.83 on Thursday. COPT Defense Properties has a 12-month low of $22.20 and a 12-month high of $34.22. 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 company has a market capitalization of $3.70 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 26.91 and a beta of 0.98. The firm’s fifty day moving average price is $31.47 and its 200 day moving average price is $28.42.

COPT Defense Properties (NYSE:CDP) last announced its earnings results on Monday, October 28th. The company reported $0.32 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.64 by ($0.32). The business had revenue of $189.23 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $167.37 million. COPT Defense Properties had a return on equity of 8.99% and a net margin of 18.34%. The firm’s revenue was up 12.3% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $0.60 earnings per share. On average, research analysts forecast that COPT Defense Properties will post 2.57 EPS for the current fiscal year.

COPT Defense Properties Announces Dividend

The business 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 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.59%. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, December 31st. COPT Defense Properties’s payout ratio is currently 96.72%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, COO Britt A. Snider purchased 1,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, September 10th. The stock was acquired 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 owns 2,000 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $58,820. This trade represents a 100.00 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The purchase was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Insiders own 1.06% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research analysts recently weighed in on CDP shares. BTIG Research increased their target price on COPT Defense Properties from $33.00 to $38.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their price objective on COPT Defense Properties from $26.00 to $31.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Wednesday, September 4th. Wells Fargo & Company dropped their target price on shares of COPT Defense Properties from $33.00 to $32.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, September 11th. Wedbush lifted their price target on shares of COPT Defense Properties from $28.00 to $33.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Monday, August 5th. Finally, Truist Financial increased their price objective on shares of COPT Defense Properties from $27.00 to $31.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research report on Thursday, August 29th. Three analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and five have issued a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $31.75.

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.