Short Interest in Spok Holdings, Inc. (NASDAQ:SPOK) Expands By 66.7%

Key Points

• Short interest in Spok Holdings increased by 66.7% in August, reaching a total of 266,400 shares.
• CEO Vincent D. Kelly reduced his position by 19.56% by selling 25,000 shares, while COO Michael W. Wallace sold 10,806 shares, representing a 21.12% decrease.
• Spok recently declared a quarterly dividend of $0.3125 per share, translating to a 7.2% yield and a payout ratio of 150.60%.

Spok Holdings, Inc. (NASDAQ:SPOK - Get Free Report) was the recipient of a large increase in short interest during the month of August. As of August 15th, there was short interest totaling 266,400 shares, anincreaseof66.7% from the July 31st total of 159,800 shares. Based on an average daily volume of 127,900 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is presently 2.1 days. Based on an average daily volume of 127,900 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is presently 2.1 days.

Insider Activity at Spok

In other news, CEO Vincent D. Kelly sold 25,000 shares of Spok stock in a transaction on Thursday, August 21st. The shares were sold at an average price of $17.69, for a total value of $442,250.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer owned 102,817 shares in the company, valued at $1,818,832.73. The trade was a 19.56% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, COO Michael W. Wallace sold 10,806 shares of Spok stock in a transaction on Monday, August 25th. The shares were sold at an average price of $17.87, for a total transaction of $193,103.22. Following the completion of the sale, the chief operating officer owned 40,369 shares of the company's stock, valued at $721,394.03. This represents a 21.12% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 7.37% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Spok

Several large investors have recently bought and sold shares of SPOK. Kingstone Capital Partners Texas LLC bought a new stake in shares of Spok during the 2nd quarter valued at about $197,634,000. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. grew its stake in shares of Spok by 33.4% during the 1st quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. now owns 521,571 shares of the Wireless communications provider's stock valued at $8,575,000 after purchasing an additional 130,478 shares during the period. Geode Capital Management LLC grew its stake in shares of Spok by 6.1% during the 2nd quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 518,327 shares of the Wireless communications provider's stock valued at $9,166,000 after purchasing an additional 29,957 shares during the period. Acadian Asset Management LLC grew its stake in shares of Spok by 3.5% during the 2nd quarter. Acadian Asset Management LLC now owns 390,009 shares of the Wireless communications provider's stock valued at $6,894,000 after purchasing an additional 13,077 shares during the period. Finally, CSM Advisors LLC bought a new stake in shares of Spok during the 2nd quarter valued at about $6,175,000. 50.81% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Separately, Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of Spok from a "buy" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a research note on Saturday, May 10th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, According to MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of "Strong Buy" and a consensus target price of $20.00.

Spok Price Performance

SPOK opened at $17.44 on Friday. Spok has a 1 year low of $13.55 and a 1 year high of $19.31. The firm's fifty day moving average price is $17.92 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $16.77. The company has a market capitalization of $359.09 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of 21.01 and a beta of 0.55.

Spok (NASDAQ:SPOK - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, July 30th. The Wireless communications provider reported $0.22 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.18 by $0.04. Spok had a return on equity of 11.11% and a net margin of 12.12%.The company had revenue of $35.69 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $35.00 million. Spok has set its FY 2025 guidance at EPS. As a group, equities analysts anticipate that Spok will post 0.76 EPS for the current year.

Spok Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, September 9th. Investors of record on Tuesday, August 19th will be issued a $0.3125 dividend. This represents a $1.25 annualized dividend and a yield of 7.2%. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, August 19th. Spok's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 150.60%.

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.

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