Spok Holdings, Inc. (NASDAQ:SPOK) to Issue Quarterly Dividend of $0.31

Spok Holdings, Inc. (NASDAQ:SPOK) announced a quarterly dividend on Wednesday, October 30th,Zacks Dividends reports. Stockholders of record on Monday, November 18th will be paid a dividend of 0.313 per share by the Wireless communications provider on Monday, December 9th. This represents a $1.25 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 7.57%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, November 18th.

Spok has raised its dividend payment by an average of 35.7% annually over the last three years. Spok has a payout ratio of 158.2% indicating that the company cannot currently cover its dividend with earnings alone and is relying on its balance sheet to cover its dividend payments. Equities analysts expect Spok to earn $0.79 per share next year, which means the company may not be able to cover its $1.25 annual dividend with an expected future payout ratio of 158.2%.

Spok Stock Performance

Shares of NASDAQ:SPOK opened at $16.54 on Friday. The company has a market capitalization of $335.27 million, a P/E ratio of 22.66 and a beta of 0.33. The company’s 50-day moving average is $15.33 and its 200 day moving average is $15.15. Spok has a fifty-two week low of $13.24 and a fifty-two week high of $18.14.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Spok news, CEO Vincent D. Kelly sold 45,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Monday, August 19th. The stock was sold at an average price of $14.83, for a total transaction of $667,350.00. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 201,645 shares in the company, valued at $2,990,395.35. This represents a 18.24 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, COO Michael W. Wallace sold 25,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, August 20th. The stock was sold at an average price of $14.80, for a total value of $370,000.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief operating officer now directly owns 49,465 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $732,082. The trade was a 33.57 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 10.51% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research analysts have weighed in on the stock. B. Riley assumed coverage on shares of Spok in a research note on Thursday, September 26th. They issued a “neutral” rating and a $15.00 target price on the stock. StockNews.com upgraded Spok from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, October 25th.

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.