COPT Defense Properties (NYSE:CDP) and Independence Realty Trust (NYSE:IRT) Financial Contrast

Independence Realty Trust (NYSE:IRT) and COPT Defense Properties (NYSE:CDP) are both mid-cap finance companies, but which is the better stock? We will compare the two businesses based on the strength of their dividends, institutional ownership, risk, valuation, earnings, profitability and analyst recommendations.

Insider and Institutional Ownership

88.3% of Independence Realty Trust shares are held by institutional investors. 0.7% of Independence Realty Trust shares are held by insiders. Comparatively, 1.1% of COPT Defense Properties shares are held by insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that hedge funds, large money managers and endowments believe a stock is poised for long-term growth.

Valuation and Earnings

This table compares Independence Realty Trust and COPT Defense Properties”s revenue, earnings per share (EPS) and valuation.

	Gross Revenue	Price/Sales Ratio	Net Income	Earnings Per Share	Price/Earnings Ratio
Independence Realty Trust	$660.98 million	7.27	-$17.23 million	N/A	N/A
COPT Defense Properties	$749.56 million	4.91	-$73.47 million	$1.22	26.75

Independence Realty Trust has higher earnings, but lower revenue than COPT Defense Properties.

Dividends

Independence Realty Trust pays an annual dividend of $0.64 per share and has a dividend yield of 3.0%. COPT Defense Properties pays an annual dividend of $1.18 per share and has a dividend yield of 3.6%. COPT Defense Properties pays out 96.7% of its earnings in the form of a dividend, suggesting it may not have sufficient earnings to cover its dividend payment in the future.

Volatility & Risk

Independence Realty Trust has a beta of 1.19, meaning that its stock price is 19% more volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, COPT Defense Properties has a beta of 0.98, meaning that its stock price is 2% less volatile than the S&P 500.

Analyst Recommendations

This is a summary of recent ratings and target prices for Independence Realty Trust and COPT Defense Properties, as reported by MarketBeat.

	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
Independence Realty Trust	0	1	6	0	2.86
COPT Defense Properties	0	3	5	0	2.63

Independence Realty Trust presently has a consensus target price of $20.43, suggesting a potential downside of 4.25%. COPT Defense Properties has a consensus target price of $32.00, suggesting a potential downside of 1.96%. Given COPT Defense Properties’ higher possible upside, analysts clearly believe COPT Defense Properties is more favorable than Independence Realty Trust.

Profitability

This table compares Independence Realty Trust and COPT Defense Properties’ net margins, return on equity and return on assets.

	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
Independence Realty Trust	-0.03%	-0.01%	N/A
COPT Defense Properties	18.34%	8.99%	3.25%

Summary

COPT Defense Properties beats Independence Realty Trust on 8 of the 15 factors compared between the two stocks.

About Independence Realty Trust

Independence Realty Trust, Inc. (NYSE: IRT) is a real estate investment trust that owns and operates multifamily communities, across non-gateway U.S. markets including Atlanta, GA, Dallas, TX, Denver, CO, Columbus, OH, Indianapolis, IN, Raleigh-Durham, NC, Oklahoma City, OK, Nashville, TN, Houston, TX, and Tampa, FL. IRT’s investment strategy is focused on gaining scale near major employment centers within key amenity rich submarkets that offer good school districts and high-quality retail. IRT aims to provide stockholders attractive risk-adjusted returns through diligent portfolio management, strong operational performance, and a consistent return on capital through distributions and capital appreciation.

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. As of December 31, 2023, the Company's Defense/IT Portfolio of 190 properties, including 24 owned through unconsolidated joint ventures, encompassed 21.7 million square feet and was 97.2% leased.