Principal Financial Group Inc. Sells 64,561 Shares of COPT Defense Properties $CDP

Principal Financial Group Inc. lowered its position in shares of COPT Defense Properties (NYSE:CDP) by 3.4% in the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 1,844,024 shares of the company’s stock after selling 64,561 shares during the quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. owned approximately 1.63% of COPT Defense Properties worth $53,587,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Financial Consulate Inc. acquired a new position in COPT Defense Properties during the 3rd quarter valued at about $39,000. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC lifted its holdings in COPT Defense Properties by 1,176.5% in the second quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 1,685 shares of the company’s stock valued at $46,000 after buying an additional 1,553 shares during the period. GAMMA Investing LLC boosted its stake in COPT Defense Properties by 31.2% in the third quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 1,973 shares of the company’s stock valued at $57,000 after acquiring an additional 469 shares during the last quarter. Osaic Holdings Inc. boosted its stake in COPT Defense Properties by 59.6% in the second quarter. Osaic Holdings Inc. now owns 3,193 shares of the company’s stock valued at $88,000 after acquiring an additional 1,192 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Hantz Financial Services Inc. grew its holdings in COPT Defense Properties by 810.7% during the 2nd quarter. Hantz Financial Services Inc. now owns 3,415 shares of the company’s stock worth $94,000 after acquiring an additional 3,040 shares during the period.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

CDP has been the topic of several recent research reports. Truist Financial raised their price target on COPT Defense Properties from $30.00 to $31.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research report on Monday, December 15th. Cantor Fitzgerald set a $33.00 target price on COPT Defense Properties in a report on Monday, January 5th. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their target price on COPT Defense Properties from $30.00 to $33.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Tuesday, November 25th. Weiss Ratings reiterated a “buy (b-)” rating on shares of COPT Defense Properties in a research report on Wednesday, January 21st. Finally, Evercore ISI decreased their price objective on shares of COPT Defense Properties from $35.00 to $34.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a report on Monday, December 15th. Five equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and two have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $33.00.

COPT Defense Properties Stock Performance

Shares of CDP opened at $31.07 on Thursday. The firm has a market cap of $3.52 billion, a P/E ratio of 23.36 and a beta of 0.86. COPT Defense Properties has a twelve month low of $23.92 and a twelve month high of $31.64. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.57, a quick ratio of 2.34 and a current ratio of 2.34. The firm’s 50 day moving average price is $29.47 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $29.03.

COPT Defense Properties Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, January 15th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, December 31st were paid a $0.305 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, December 31st. This represents a $1.22 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.9%. COPT Defense Properties’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 91.73%.

About COPT Defense Properties

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.