COPT Defense Properties (CDP) Q3 2026 Earnings Report
MX:CDP Q3 2026 EPS Results
- Actual EPS
- MXN 7.70
- Consensus EPS
- MXN 6.58
- Beat/Miss
- Beat by +MXN 1.13
- One Year Ago EPS
- MXN 6.95
MX:CDP Q3 2026 Revenue Results
- Actual Revenue
- MXN 3.92B
- Expected Revenue
- MXN 3.58B
- Beat/Miss
- Beat by +MXN 344.34M
- YoY Revenue Growth
- +10.57%
Earnings Announcement Details
- Quarter
- Q3 2026
- Date
- 10/29/2026
- Time
- After Close
- Conference Call
- Thursday, October 29, 2026
MX:CDP Upcoming Earnings
COPT Defense Properties's next earnings date is estimated for February 11, 2027, based on past reporting schedules.
Q3 2026 Earnings Call Audio
MX:CDP Q3 2026 Earnings Call
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Q3 2026 Earnings Slide Deck
Q3 2026 Earnings Call Summary
Earnings Call Sentiment|Positive
The call was strongly positive, with management reporting FFO and same-property NOI outperformance, robust vacancy leasing, raised 2026 guidance, high occupancy, significant development demand, expanded Redstone Gateway capacity, and a supportive defense-spending backdrop. The principal challenges were higher interest expense and financing rates, exchangeable-note dilution, lower retention guidance resulting from strategic space recaptures, modest lease-rate and occupancy declines, and delayed noncore asset dispositions. Management characterized the underlying business strategy, tenant demand, balance sheet, and execution outlook as strong.
Company Guidance
For 2026, COPT Defense increased the midpoint of FFO per share as adjusted for comparability to $2.80 per share, same property cash NOI growth to 4.25%, capital committed to new investments to $375 million, and capital invested in development and acquisitions to $240 million; it reduced the midpoint of tenant retention guidance by 250 basis points to a still very strong 80% and increased the vacancy leasing target to 625 thousand square feet. Management expects FFO per share growth of nearly 3% in 2026, or roughly 4% this year excluding the increased dilution from exchangeable notes, and expects same property occupancy to end the year at roughly 94%; it also expects lease activity at 410 Goss Road sometime in 2027.
- FFO and Same-Property NOI OutperformanceThird-quarter FFO per share was $0.71, $0.02 above the midpoint of guidance and up 2.9% year over year. Same-property cash NOI increased 3.2% year over year and 5.3% during the first 9 months.
- Strong Vacancy Leasing PerformanceThe company executed 222 thousand square feet of vacancy leasing in the third quarter, 50% above its trailing 5-year quarterly average. Vacancy leasing during the first 9 months was reported as 453 thousand square feet by the CEO and 504 thousand square feet by the COO, exceeding the initial full-year target of 400 thousand square feet and the subsequent 475 thousand square feet target.
- Raised 2026 GuidanceThe company increased the midpoint of 2026 guidance for four metrics: adjusted FFO per share to $2.80, same-property cash NOI growth to 4.25%, capital committed to new investments to $375 million, and capital invested in development and acquisitions to $240 million.
- Strong Leasing Pipeline and Activity RatioThe company has more than 200 thousand square feet of leases in advanced negotiations. Executed leases and advanced negotiations total 710 thousand square feet, supporting the increase in the full-year vacancy leasing target to 625 thousand square feet. The leasing activity ratio increased to 83%, based on more than 1 million square feet of prospects against approximately 1.25 million square feet of availability.
- High Portfolio and Defense IT OccupancyAt the end of the third quarter, the total portfolio was 95% leased and 94% occupied. The defense IT portfolio, which represents 93% of NOI, was 96.2% leased and 95.2% occupied.
- Strategic Space Recaptures and Tenant UpgradesThe company recaptured nearly 160 thousand square feet from three tenants and had leased or expected to lease more than 145 thousand square feet of that space to higher-value tenants. The company stated that the recaptures were designed to strengthen the tenant roster and support tenants with stronger long-term growth and credit profiles.
- Successful Redstone Gateway LeasingAt Redstone Gateway, the company recaptured 46 thousand square feet from a defense tenant and was in advanced negotiations to backfill most of the space with Lockheed Martin, which would expand its presence in the park by nearly 30%. The Huntsville operating portfolio was 98% leased.
- Columbia Gateway Tenant ExpansionThe company recaptured 56 thousand square feet from a nondefense tenant scheduled to vacate in 2027 and fully backfilled the space with Frequentis, an existing and growing defense contractor focused on cyber and aviation. Frequentis has more than doubled its Columbia Gateway footprint since the beginning of the year, expanding from 87 thousand square feet by nearly 100 thousand square feet through four transactions.
- Franklin Center Leasing ProgressThe company signed a 30 thousand square foot lease at Franklin Center, bringing the recent acquisition to 87% leased.
- Positive Renewal Leasing EconomicsThe company executed nearly 550 thousand square feet of renewal leasing in the quarter, with cash rent spreads up 8.5% and GAAP rent spreads up 20%. Cash rent spreads on three data center shell renewals held in joint ventures averaged 140%. Excluding those renewals, quarterly cash rent spreads were up 70 basis points and were up 2.7% over the first 9 months.
- Data Center Renewal Track RecordOver the past three years, the company executed 10 data center shell renewals totaling 1.7 million square feet at a weighted average cash rent spread of more than 120%. The company reported that renewal uplift in this segment increased from 110% to 120% and then to 140% over the period.
- Development Pipeline GrowthThe active development pipeline totals 1.1 million square feet, is 64% pre-leased, and represents nearly $530 million of capital commitment. Four of the eight projects are 100% pre-leased.
- Strong Preleasing at 8.5 Thousand Advanced GatewayThe 8.5 thousand Advanced Gateway inventory building is nearly 90% pre-leased after a 75 thousand square foot missile defense lease was signed during the quarter. An additional 14 thousand square foot lease in advanced negotiations would bring the building to just over 98% leased, and management expects it to be essentially fully leased six months after substantial completion.
- New Redstone Gateway Development CommitmentsThe company began two defense contractor inventory projects at Redstone Gateway totaling $88 million of capital commitment. The 175 thousand square foot 6.3 thousand Redstone Gateway project has 235 thousand square feet of prospects, while the 59 thousand square foot 2.2 thousand Rideout Road project has 105 thousand square feet of prospects.
- Expanded Redstone Gateway CapacityThe company expanded the Redstone Gateway master plan by an additional 500 thousand square feet. The park can now accommodate 6.4 million square feet without structured parking, increasing future development capacity to 3.2 million square feet. The company is designing the next five buildings and planning eight additional buildings.
- Robust Development Leasing PipelineThe development leasing pipeline consists of 1.1 million square feet of opportunities considered at least 50% likely to be won within two years or less, plus an additional 1.2 million square feet of potential development opportunities.
- Missile Defense-Driven DemandThe company has executed 170 thousand square feet of vacancy and investment leasing tied to missile defense missions during the past year, with a strong pipeline of additional demand. Management stated that the Golden Dome initiative is emerging as a catalyst for growth in Huntsville.
- Broader Defense and Cyber ExposureLeasing demand includes tenants supporting missile defense missions in Huntsville and US Cyber Command in Columbia Gateway, with Columbia Gateway accounting for nearly half of vacancy leasing year to date. Management also cited exposure to naval command and control, technology research and development, test and evaluation, and other defense missions.
- Supportive Defense Funding BackdropManagement stated that the defense base budget increased by $285 billion, or 51%, from fiscal year 2015 through fiscal year 2026, with annual increases during the period. The fiscal year 2026 Department of Defense base budget is $840 billion, described as the highest defense budget in history, while the fiscal year 2027 base budget request is $1.1 trillion.
- Embedded Demand from Prior AppropriationsManagement stated that the FY 2025 and FY 2026 budgets, together with $150 billion of funding appropriated in the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law, are expected to continue producing portfolio demand through 2027. The company cited a typical 12- to 18-month lag between budget appropriation and leasing activity.
- Private Capital Entering Defense TechnologyManagement highlighted private-sector investment in defense technology, including Blackstone's $20 billion invested in the sector over five years, its recent $1 billion defense technology platform investment, Carlyle's $3 billion defense fund, and JPMorgan's $1.5 trillion security and resiliency initiative.
- Capital Commitment and Long-Term GrowthThe company expects to commit $375 million to new investments in 2026, the highest level since 2021, bringing two-year capital commitments to $650 million. Since 2019, compound annual growth rates were stated as 5.1% for NOI, 5.2% for EBITDA, and 4.7% for FFO per share.
- Strong Balance Sheet PositionManagement stated that the company has no material debt maturities until September 2028, the lowest credit spreads in the office subsector, strong support from fixed-income investors, and strengthening balance sheet and financial metrics.
- Stable Development Underwriting and Faster Delivery PlanningManagement maintained an 8.5% initial cash yield threshold on development costs. To respond to tenant demand and urgency, the company is advancing preplanning so that plans can be adapted to specific uses and reduce the development cycle by several months.
- Strong Rental Rate EnvironmentThe company stated that it continues to reduce free rent where possible because of demand and limited availability. New Huntsville buildings are setting new rental-rate records, and rents in most markets are 10% to 20% higher than surrounding markets.
MX:CDP Earnings History
| Report Date | Fiscal Quarter | Forecast / EPS | Last Year's EPS | EPS YoY Change | Press Release |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Feb 11, 2027 | 2026 (Q4) | 6.74- | 6.2 | ― | ― |
| Oct 29, 2026 | 2026 (Q3) | 6.587.70 | 6.95 | 10.81% (+0.75) | |
| Jul 27, 2026 | 2026 (Q2) | 6.187.51 | 6.39 | 17.65% (+1.13) | |
| Apr 27, 2026 | 2026 (Q1) | 6.226.39 | 5.82 | 9.68% (+0.56) | |
| Feb 05, 2026 | 2025 (Q4) | 6.186.20 | 5.82 | 6.45% (+0.38) | |
| Oct 30, 2025 | 2025 (Q3) | 6.506.95 | 6.01 | 15.63% (+0.94) | |
| Jul 28, 2025 | 2025 (Q2) | 6.316.39 | 5.82 | 9.68% (+0.56) | |
| Apr 28, 2025 | 2025 (Q1) | 6.165.82 | 5.45 | 6.90% (+0.38) | |
| Feb 06, 2025 | 2024 (Q4) | 6.265.82 | 5.64 | 3.33% (+0.19) | |
| Oct 28, 2024 | 2024 (Q3) | 5.906.01 | -36.45 | 116.49% (+42.46) |
The table shows recent earnings report dates and whether the forecast was beat or missed. See the change in forecast and EPS from the previous year.
Beat Missed
