Spok (NASDAQ:SPOK) Upgraded to “Strong-Buy” at StockNews.com

StockNews.com upgraded shares of Spok (NASDAQ:SPOK) from a buy rating to a strong-buy rating in a research note issued to investors on Wednesday morning.

Separately, B. Riley raised Spok from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and increased their price objective for the company from $15.00 to $20.00 in a research report on Thursday, February 27th.

Spok Stock Down 0.4 %

Shares of Spok stock opened at $16.36 on Wednesday. The stock has a market capitalization of $331.65 million, a P/E ratio of 22.41 and a beta of 0.33. The stock has a 50 day moving average price of $16.26 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $15.80. Spok has a 12-month low of $13.24 and a 12-month high of $17.96.

Spok (NASDAQ:SPOK) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, February 26th. The Wireless communications provider reported $0.18 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.20 by ($0.02). The company had revenue of $33.89 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $35.50 million. Spok had a return on equity of 9.20% and a net margin of 10.66%. Sell-side analysts anticipate that Spok will post 0.76 earnings per share for the current year.

Spok Cuts Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 31st. Stockholders of record on Friday, March 14th will be given a $0.3125 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Friday, March 14th. This represents a $1.25 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 7.64%. Spok’s dividend payout ratio is 168.92%.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Spok

Several hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the business. BNP Paribas Financial Markets boosted its position in shares of Spok by 18.9% in the third quarter. BNP Paribas Financial Markets now owns 3,837 shares of the Wireless communications provider’s stock valued at $58,000 after acquiring an additional 609 shares during the period. Invesco Ltd. raised its stake in shares of Spok by 2.4% in the fourth quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 40,116 shares of the Wireless communications provider’s stock valued at $644,000 after purchasing an additional 938 shares in the last quarter. Sanctuary Advisors LLC raised its stake in shares of Spok by 4.9% in the fourth quarter. Sanctuary Advisors LLC now owns 27,269 shares of the Wireless communications provider’s stock valued at $439,000 after purchasing an additional 1,271 shares in the last quarter. Stifel Financial Corp raised its stake in shares of Spok by 7.3% in the fourth quarter. Stifel Financial Corp now owns 18,791 shares of the Wireless communications provider’s stock valued at $302,000 after purchasing an additional 1,286 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Lazard Asset Management LLC raised its stake in shares of Spok by 30.8% in the fourth quarter. Lazard Asset Management LLC now owns 5,868 shares of the Wireless communications provider’s stock valued at $94,000 after purchasing an additional 1,383 shares in the last quarter. 50.81% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Spok Company Profile

Spok Holdings, Inc, through its subsidiary, Spok, Inc, provides healthcare communication solutions in the United States, Europe, Canada, Australia, Asia, and the Middle East. The company's products and services enhance workflows for clinicians and support administrative compliance. It delivers clinical information to care teams when and where it matters to enhance patient outcomes; and provides GenA Pager, a one-way alphanumeric pager.