CDP vs HIW: Which Is the Better Buy in 2026?

Same yardstick, side by side (as of October 2026). Valuation lined up like this is most meaningful for two names in the same corner of the market, which these are. Figures are approximate; verify before investing.

Reading it: CDP is the cheaper of the two on forward earnings, but cheaper is not the same as better. Pair the valuation with growth (how far the forward P/E sits below the trailing P/E) and risk (beta) before you decide.

The metrics above tell you which is the marginally better business. The bigger risk for most people is not picking the slightly worse stock, it is over-concentrating. CDP and HIW share themes, so owning both, or adding either to what you already hold, can quietly push a large share of your portfolio into one bet.

This is the part a generic comparison page cannot answer, because it depends on what you own. Connect your brokerage and Walnut shows your real, combined CDP and HIW exposure, flags overlap with your existing positions, and tells you if adding one would tip you past a concentration you are comfortable with, read-only by default, with your login staying at your broker. Walnut is not an investment adviser.

COPT Defense Properties (NYSE: CDP), formerly Corporate Office Properties Trust, is a self-managed REIT that owns, develops, and operates properties located near or inside key US Government defense installations and intelligence hubs. Its Defense/IT portfolio spans roughly 23 million square feet across markets like Fort Meade and the National Business Park in Maryland, Northern Virginia, and Redstone Arsenal in Huntsville, Alabama, and its tenants are primarily the US Government and defense contractors engaged in priority national-security work. The high security and specialized build requirements create meaningful barriers to entry and long, sticky leases.

Full CDP guide

Highwoods Properties (NYSE: HIW) is a fully integrated office REIT headquartered in Raleigh that owns, develops, leases and manages office properties concentrated in the best business districts (BBDs) of fast-growing Sun Belt markets including Atlanta, Charlotte, Dallas, Nashville, Orlando, Raleigh, Richmond and Tampa. The company focuses on newer, amenity-rich buildings meant to win the flight-to-quality trend as tenants consolidate into better space, and it recycles capital by selling older assets and funding development in supply-constrained submarkets. It also runs a modest development pipeline, recently placing over $200 million of projects into service and investing in properties in Dallas and Raleigh, and in September 2026 it closed about $73.5 million of non-core property sales.

Full HIW guide

Both fit overlapping themes, but they are not interchangeable. The useful comparison is which set of drivers and risks you want exposure to.

• CDP drivers: Defense-budget-linked demand; Pre-leased development pipeline.
• HIW drivers: Sun Belt flight-to-quality; Rent growth and leasing momentum.

A faster-growing, richer-valued name usually swings harder, so it suits a longer horizon and a higher tolerance for volatility; a steadier, more cash-generative business suits a more conservative or income-minded investor. The honest test is which set of risks you could hold through a drawdown: CDP carries concentration risk: its results depend heavily on US defense spending priorities and on the government and a relatively narrow set of contractors as tenants, so budget cuts, base realignments, or shifts in mission funding could pressure occupancy. For HIW, office remains the most challenged commercial real estate sector, with hybrid work and corporate downsizing pressuring long-term demand and occupancy.

Pick CDP if you believe its drivers more; HIW if you believe its. Many investors hold both, but since they share themes, that is a concentrated bet, not diversification. Decide deliberately and check overlap. For the full detail, see the CDP and HIW guides.

CDP. At about $33.44 on October 16, 2026, CDP trades near 12 times the midpoint of its 2026 FFO guidance (about $2.78 per share), a valuation reflecting its defensive, defense-anchored positioning versus commodity office REITs. Q2 2026 FFO per share rose about 4% and management raised full-year guidance again, while the GAAP P/E of about 23 times overstates the multiple because REIT earnings carry heavy depreciation. Shares have eased from 52-week highs near $38.90 reached earlier in 2026.

HIW. At about $29.50, HIW trades near 8 to 8.5 times the midpoint of its 2026 FFO guidance, a low multiple that reflects the market's caution on office REITs, and its appeal is largely the high, FFO-covered dividend. Its trailing GAAP P/E near 20 is flattered by property-sale gains, which is why the forward GAAP P/E (about 42) looks so different. Q3 2026 results on October 27 come with consensus revenue near $217 million, and the nine covering analysts have a mean target of about $32, close to the current price.

Headline figures (approximate, October 2026): CDP shows revenue (ttm) ~$788M, Q2 2026 up ~4% YoY, diluted ffo per share, as adjusted (q2 2026) ~$0.71, up ~4%, 2026 ffo guidance (midpoint) ~$2.78 (raised $0.02 in July), net income (ttm) / eps ~$164M / ~$1.44; Q2 EPS $0.40 vs ~$0.32 estimate; HIW shows revenue (ttm) ~$839M (+7.5% YoY in Q2 2026), q2 2026 revenue ~$216.4M (vs ~$212M expected), q2 2026 ffo / share ~$0.90 (vs ~$0.86 expected, $0.89 a year earlier), 2026 ffo guidance ~$3.46 to $3.70 per share (raised from $3.40 to $3.68).

CDP and HIW are related but distinct: same themes, different businesses and risks. Neither wins in the abstract; the right pick is whichever thesis you actually believe, sized so you are not over-concentrated in one theme. Walnut can show your combined CDP and HIW exposure against your real portfolio. It is not an investment adviser.