Spok (NASDAQ:SPOK) Downgraded to "Buy" Rating by StockNews.com

StockNews.com cut shares of Spok (NASDAQ:SPOK - Free Report) from a strong-buy rating to a buy rating in a research note issued to investors on Monday.

Separately, B. Riley raised shares of Spok from a "neutral" rating to a "buy" rating and raised their target price for the stock from $15.00 to $20.00 in a report on Thursday, February 27th.

Spok Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ:SPOK traded down $0.20 during midday trading on Monday, reaching $16.38. The company had a trading volume of 213,968 shares, compared to its average volume of 117,529. The stock has a market capitalization of $334.46 million, a P/E ratio of 22.44 and a beta of 0.40. The stock's fifty day moving average price is $16.39 and its 200-day moving average price is $15.99. Spok has a one year low of $13.24 and a one year high of $17.96.

Spok (NASDAQ:SPOK - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, February 26th. The Wireless communications provider reported $0.18 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.20 by ($0.02). The firm had revenue of $33.89 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $35.50 million. Spok had a return on equity of 9.20% and a net margin of 10.66%. As a group, sell-side analysts forecast that Spok will post 0.76 earnings per share for the current year.

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Spok Cuts Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 31st. Shareholders of record on Friday, March 14th were paid a $0.3125 dividend. This represents a $1.25 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 7.63%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, March 14th. Spok's payout ratio is 168.92%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Spok

Several institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the company. BNP Paribas Financial Markets boosted its stake in Spok by 18.9% during the 3rd quarter. BNP Paribas Financial Markets now owns 3,837 shares of the Wireless communications provider's stock valued at $58,000 after purchasing an additional 609 shares during the period. Invesco Ltd. boosted its position in shares of Spok by 2.4% during the fourth quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 40,116 shares of the Wireless communications provider's stock worth $644,000 after buying an additional 938 shares during the period. Sanctuary Advisors LLC grew its holdings in Spok by 4.9% in the 4th quarter. Sanctuary Advisors LLC now owns 27,269 shares of the Wireless communications provider's stock worth $439,000 after buying an additional 1,271 shares in the last quarter. Stifel Financial Corp increased its position in Spok by 7.3% in the 4th quarter. Stifel Financial Corp now owns 18,791 shares of the Wireless communications provider's stock valued at $302,000 after acquiring an additional 1,286 shares during the period. Finally, Lazard Asset Management LLC raised its stake in Spok by 30.8% during the 4th quarter. Lazard Asset Management LLC now owns 5,868 shares of the Wireless communications provider's stock valued at $94,000 after acquiring an additional 1,383 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 50.81% of the company's stock.

About Spok

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.