COPT Defense Properties (NYSE:CDP) Shares Bought by Jefferies Financial Group Inc.

Jefferies Financial Group Inc. raised its holdings in COPT Defense Properties (NYSE:CDP) by 237.7% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 54,399 shares of the company’s stock after purchasing an additional 38,288 shares during the quarter. Jefferies Financial Group Inc.’s holdings in COPT Defense Properties were worth $1,684,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Raymond James Financial Inc. acquired a new position in COPT Defense Properties in the fourth quarter valued at $16,063,000. KBC Group NV increased its stake in COPT Defense Properties by 33.4% in the fourth quarter. KBC Group NV now owns 5,081 shares of the company’s stock valued at $157,000 after purchasing an additional 1,271 shares during the period. Cbre Investment Management Listed Real Assets LLC boosted its holdings in shares of COPT Defense Properties by 192.9% in the fourth quarter. Cbre Investment Management Listed Real Assets LLC now owns 1,158,207 shares of the company’s stock valued at $35,847,000 after acquiring an additional 762,840 shares in the last quarter. Resona Asset Management Co. Ltd. purchased a new stake in shares of COPT Defense Properties in the fourth quarter valued at about $1,397,000. Finally, Asset Management One Co. Ltd. boosted its holdings in shares of COPT Defense Properties by 6.0% in the fourth quarter. Asset Management One Co. Ltd. now owns 233,826 shares of the company’s stock valued at $7,258,000 after acquiring an additional 13,302 shares in the last quarter.

COPT Defense Properties Trading Down 2.0%

Shares of CDP opened at $26.47 on Thursday. The company has a current ratio of 2.47, a quick ratio of 2.38 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.56. The firm’s 50-day moving average is $26.47 and its two-hundred day moving average is $28.95. COPT Defense Properties has a twelve month low of $23.47 and a twelve month high of $34.22. The firm has a market capitalization of $2.99 billion, a P/E ratio of 21.52 and a beta of 0.86.

COPT Defense Properties (NYSE:CDP) last issued its earnings results on Monday, April 28th. The company reported $0.65 earnings per share for the quarter, hitting the consensus estimate of $0.65. COPT Defense Properties had a net margin of 18.44% and a return on equity of 9.07%. The company had revenue of $187.86 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $186.37 million. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $0.62 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 6.0% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, research analysts predict that COPT Defense Properties will post 2.67 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

COPT Defense Properties Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, April 16th. Shareholders of record on Monday, March 31st were issued a $0.305 dividend. This represents a $1.22 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 4.61%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, March 31st. This is an increase from COPT Defense Properties’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.30. COPT Defense Properties’s dividend payout ratio is 97.60%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Separately, Jefferies Financial Group assumed coverage on shares of COPT Defense Properties in a report on Monday, March 17th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $31.00 target price on the stock. Two analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and five have issued a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $33.43.

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.