Public Employees Retirement System of Ohio Lowers Position in COPT Defense Properties $CDP

Public Employees Retirement System of Ohio cut its stake in shares of COPT Defense Properties (NYSE:CDP) by 12.1% during the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 220,381 shares of the company’s stock after selling 30,393 shares during the period. Public Employees Retirement System of Ohio’s holdings in COPT Defense Properties were worth $6,744,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Easterly Investment Partners LLC grew its position in COPT Defense Properties by 154.2% in the 4th quarter. Easterly Investment Partners LLC now owns 299,934 shares of the company’s stock worth $8,338,000 after purchasing an additional 181,935 shares in the last quarter. UBS Group AG lifted its position in shares of COPT Defense Properties by 229.6% during the 4th quarter. UBS Group AG now owns 457,210 shares of the company’s stock worth $12,710,000 after buying an additional 318,493 shares in the last quarter. Louisiana State Employees Retirement System bought a new position in shares of COPT Defense Properties during the 1st quarter worth approximately $1,004,000. Hsbc Holdings PLC boosted its stake in shares of COPT Defense Properties by 25.2% in the 4th quarter. Hsbc Holdings PLC now owns 196,540 shares of the company’s stock worth $5,466,000 after buying an additional 39,524 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank boosted its stake in shares of COPT Defense Properties by 48.2% in the 4th quarter. Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank now owns 117,017 shares of the company’s stock worth $3,253,000 after buying an additional 38,070 shares during the last quarter.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of analysts recently commented on the company. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their price target on COPT Defense Properties from $33.00 to $34.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Friday, May 15th. Cantor Fitzgerald reissued an “overweight” rating and issued a $37.00 price objective on shares of COPT Defense Properties in a research report on Thursday, June 25th. Truist Financial upped their price objective on COPT Defense Properties from $33.00 to $34.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research note on Monday, June 8th. Evercore reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and set a $42.00 target price on shares of COPT Defense Properties in a research report on Monday. Finally, Weiss Ratings reiterated a “buy (b)” rating on shares of COPT Defense Properties in a research note on Friday, July 17th. Five research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and three have issued a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $35.50.

Insider Activity at COPT Defense Properties

In other news, Director Robert L. Denton sold 3,922 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, May 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $32.38, for a total transaction of $126,994.36. Following the transaction, the director owned 3,803 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $123,141.14. This represents a 50.77% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. 1.66% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

COPT Defense Properties Stock Down 0.3%

CDP opened at $38.16 on Wednesday. The company has a quick ratio of 2.85, a current ratio of 2.85 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.63. The stock has a market cap of $4.33 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 26.50 and a beta of 0.76. COPT Defense Properties has a twelve month low of $26.91 and a twelve month high of $38.86. The company’s 50-day moving average price is $34.95 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $32.71.

COPT Defense Properties (NYSE:CDP) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Monday, July 27th. The company reported $0.40 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.33 by $0.07. COPT Defense Properties had a net margin of 20.94% and a return on equity of 10.52%. The company had revenue of $197.39 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $189.36 million. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $0.34 EPS. COPT Defense Properties has set its FY 2026 guidance at 1.390-1.430 EPS and its Q3 2026 guidance at 0.370-0.390 EPS. As a group, equities analysts expect that COPT Defense Properties will post 2.78 earnings per share for the current year.

COPT Defense Properties Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, July 15th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, June 30th were paid a $0.32 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, June 30th. This represents a $1.28 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.4%. COPT Defense Properties’s payout ratio is presently 92.75%.

Key Stories Impacting COPT Defense Properties

Here are the key news stories impacting COPT Defense Properties this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Quarterly results exceeded expectations. COPT Defense reported $0.40 in second-quarter EPS versus the $0.33 consensus estimate, while revenue of $197.4 million topped forecasts of $189.4 million. Funds from operations (FFO) reached $0.71 per share, up from $0.68 a year earlier and above the $0.68 consensus. COPT Defense Reports Second Quarter 2026 Results
• Positive Sentiment: Operating momentum remains strong. Management said first-half performance exceeded expectations across financial results, occupancy, leasing activity and investment commitments. Demand for mission-critical properties serving U.S. defense and government tenants continues to support the company’s growth outlook. COPT Defense Properties Q2 2026 Earnings Call Transcript
• Positive Sentiment: Redstone Gateway and the development pipeline add longer-term upside. Expansion at Redstone Gateway is increasing demand coverage, while the defense-focused development pipeline supports expectations for higher occupancy, leasing growth and valuation. BTIG analyst Tom Catherwood initiated coverage with a Buy rating, citing the FFO beat, raised outlook and defense-driven pipeline. COPT Defense Targets 2026 FFO Midpoint
• Neutral Sentiment: Guidance requires careful interpretation. COPT Defense set third-quarter GAAP EPS guidance at $0.37-$0.39 and full-year GAAP EPS guidance at $1.39-$1.43, while its full-year FFO outlook centers on approximately $2.78 per share. Differences between these measures and consensus estimates may have created some headline uncertainty for investors. COPT Defense Properties Q2 Earnings Highlights

COPT Defense Properties Profile

COPT Defense Properties (NYSE: CDP) is a real estate investment trust organized to own, lease and manage healthcare and life science facilities serving the United States federal government, with a particular focus on Department of Defense and Veterans Affairs tenants. The company was formed in 2016 through a spin-off from Corporate Office Properties Trust, enabling it to concentrate exclusively on medical office buildings and specialized research facilities situated on or near military and federal research campuses.

The company’s portfolio comprises purpose-built, Class A medical office and outpatient specialty clinics, as well as life science laboratories.