Craig-Hallum upgrades 8×8 to Buy on innovation, low expectations

Craig-Hallum upgraded 8×8 to Buy from Hold with an unchanged price target of $4.50 following the Q2 report. The stock is down 52% in the past three months while the company reiterated estimates and provided confidence about the return of $250M to investors, primarily through aggressive debt pay down, over the next three years, the analyst tells investors in a research note. The contact center “is a land of many competitors,” but 8×8 has done an “outstanding job of defining its place in the market – primarily through innovation and focusing on a defined target customer base,” says the firm. It cites the company’s innovation, solid cash flow and low expectations for the upgrade.