COPT Defense Properties (NYSE:CDP – Get Free Report) and Cousins Properties (NYSE:CUZ – Get Free Report) are both mid-cap real estate companies, but which is the better business? We will contrast the two companies based on the strength of their institutional ownership, dividends, profitability, earnings, analyst recommendations, risk and valuation.
Insider & Institutional Ownership
94.4% of Cousins Properties shares are owned by institutional investors. 1.7% of COPT Defense Properties shares are owned by insiders. Comparatively, 1.8% of Cousins Properties shares are owned by insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that hedge funds, large money managers and endowments believe a stock will outperform the market over the long term.
Valuation and Earnings
This table compares COPT Defense Properties and Cousins Properties”s revenue, earnings per share (EPS) and valuation.
| Gross Revenue | Price/Sales Ratio | Net Income | Earnings Per Share | Price/Earnings Ratio | |
| COPT Defense Properties | $763.92 million | 5.22 | $152.32 million | $1.44 | 24.41 |
| Cousins Properties | $993.82 million | 4.62 | $40.50 million | $0.04 | 697.33 |
COPT Defense Properties has higher earnings, but lower revenue than Cousins Properties. COPT Defense Properties is trading at a lower price-to-earnings ratio than Cousins Properties, indicating that it is currently the more affordable of the two stocks.
Analyst Recommendations
This is a summary of current recommendations and price targets for COPT Defense Properties and Cousins Properties, as provided by MarketBeat.com.
| Sell Ratings | Hold Ratings | Buy Ratings | Strong Buy Ratings | Rating Score | |
| COPT Defense Properties | 0 | 3 | 5 | 0 | 2.62 |
| Cousins Properties | 0 | 3 | 7 | 0 | 2.70 |
COPT Defense Properties presently has a consensus target price of $37.38, suggesting a potential upside of 6.31%. Cousins Properties has a consensus target price of $31.18, suggesting a potential upside of 11.79%. Given Cousins Properties’ stronger consensus rating and higher probable upside, analysts clearly believe Cousins Properties is more favorable than COPT Defense Properties.
Volatility and Risk
COPT Defense Properties has a beta of 0.76, indicating that its stock price is 24% less volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, Cousins Properties has a beta of 1.17, indicating that its stock price is 17% more volatile than the S&P 500.
Dividends
COPT Defense Properties pays an annual dividend of $1.28 per share and has a dividend yield of 3.6%. Cousins Properties pays an annual dividend of $1.28 per share and has a dividend yield of 4.6%. COPT Defense Properties pays out 88.9% of its earnings in the form of a dividend, suggesting it may not have sufficient earnings to cover its dividend payment in the future. Cousins Properties pays out 3,200.0% of its earnings in the form of a dividend, suggesting it may not have sufficient earnings to cover its dividend payment in the future.
Profitability
This table compares COPT Defense Properties and Cousins Properties’ net margins, return on equity and return on assets.
| Net Margins | Return on Equity | Return on Assets | |
| COPT Defense Properties | 20.94% | 10.48% | 3.64% |
| Cousins Properties | 0.62% | 0.14% | 0.07% |
Summary
Cousins Properties beats COPT Defense Properties on 9 of the 16 factors compared between the two stocks.
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.
About Cousins Properties
Cousins Properties Incorporated ("Cousins") is a fully integrated, self-administered, and self-managed real estate investment trust (REIT). The Company, based in Atlanta and acting through its operating partnership, Cousins Properties LP, primarily invests in Class A office buildings located in high-growth Sun Belt markets. Founded in 1958, Cousins creates shareholder value through its extensive expertise in the development, acquisition, leasing, and management of high-quality real estate assets. The Company has a comprehensive strategy in place based on a simple platform, trophy assets, and opportunistic investments.
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