COPT Defense Properties (NYSE:CDP) Sees Large Drop in Short Interest

COPT Defense Properties (NYSE:CDP) was the recipient of a significant decline in short interest during the month of March. As of March 31st, there was short interest totalling 3,520,000 shares, a decline of 7.1% from the March 15th total of 3,790,000 shares. Based on an average daily trading volume, of 941,000 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is presently 3.7 days. Approximately 3.1% of the shares of the stock are short sold.

COPT Defense Properties Trading Down 0.2 %

COPT Defense Properties stock opened at $22.24 on Thursday. The company’s fifty day simple moving average is $23.92 and its 200-day simple moving average is $24.21. The company has a quick ratio of 3.36, a current ratio of 3.36 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.59. COPT Defense Properties has a 12 month low of $21.73 and a 12 month high of $26.80. The stock has a market cap of $2.51 billion, a P/E ratio of -33.19, a P/E/G ratio of 2.22 and a beta of 0.93.

COPT Defense Properties Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, April 17th. Stockholders of record on Friday, March 29th were issued a dividend of $0.295 per share. This is a boost from COPT Defense Properties’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.29. This represents a $1.18 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 5.31%. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, March 27th. COPT Defense Properties’s payout ratio is currently -176.12%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research firms have issued reports on CDP. Citigroup restated a “neutral” rating and issued a $25.00 price target (down previously from $29.00) on shares of COPT Defense Properties in a research report on Friday, March 22nd. Jefferies Financial Group upgraded shares of COPT Defense Properties from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and lifted their price target for the stock from $26.00 to $28.00 in a research report on Wednesday, February 21st. Evercore ISI upgraded shares of COPT Defense Properties from an “in-line” rating to an “outperform” rating and lifted their price target for the stock from $27.00 to $28.00 in a research report on Monday, February 12th. Finally, Truist Financial decreased their price target on shares of COPT Defense Properties from $28.00 to $27.00 and set a “hold” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, December 21st. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and four have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, COPT Defense Properties has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $26.86.

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.