GSK Target of Unusually High Options Trading (NYSE:GSK)

GSK PLC Sponsored ADR (NYSE:GSK) was the recipient of unusually large options trading on Thursday. Stock traders purchased 81,873 call options on the company. This represents an increase of approximately 1,106% compared to the average volume of 6,790 call options.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of analysts have recently commented on the company. Cfra set a $53.00 target price on GSK in a report on Thursday, October 30th. Morgan Stanley reissued an “underweight” rating on shares of GSK in a research report on Wednesday, January 14th. Barclays lowered shares of GSK from an “equal weight” rating to an “underweight” rating in a report on Tuesday, January 6th. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a “buy (b)” rating on shares of GSK in a research report on Monday, December 29th. Finally, HSBC reissued a “reduce” rating on shares of GSK in a research report on Wednesday, December 10th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, six have given a Hold rating and three have assigned a Sell rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Reduce” and an average target price of $44.13.

Insider Transactions at GSK

In related news, major shareholder Plc Gsk bought 1,470,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Thursday, December 11th. The shares were bought at an average cost of $19.00 per share, for a total transaction of $27,930,000.00. Following the purchase, the insider owned 18,245,691 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $346,668,129. This trade represents a 8.76% increase in their position. The acquisition was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Insiders own 10.00% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On GSK

Several large investors have recently bought and sold shares of GSK. Twin Peaks Wealth Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in shares of GSK during the second quarter worth about $25,000. First Horizon Corp raised its holdings in GSK by 78.7% in the 4th quarter. First Horizon Corp now owns 536 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock worth $26,000 after acquiring an additional 236 shares during the last quarter. Elyxium Wealth LLC purchased a new stake in shares of GSK during the fourth quarter valued at $30,000. CNB Bank purchased a new stake in shares of GSK during the 3rd quarter valued at about $31,000. Finally, CoreFirst Bank & Trust bought a new stake in shares of GSK in the second quarter worth approximately $33,000. 15.74% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

GSK Stock Performance

GSK traded down $0.52 during trading hours on Thursday, reaching $60.67. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 3,388,312 shares, compared to its average volume of 5,985,556. GSK has a 52 week low of $32.38 and a 52 week high of $61.69. The firm has a market cap of $123.66 billion, a PE ratio of 16.40, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.69 and a beta of 0.46. The company’s 50-day moving average is $51.68 and its 200-day moving average is $46.15. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.92, a quick ratio of 0.54 and a current ratio of 0.82.

GSK Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, April 9th. Investors of record on Friday, February 20th will be paid a dividend of $0.4856 per share. This is an increase from GSK’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.42. This represents a $1.94 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.2%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, February 20th. GSK’s payout ratio is 45.95%.

GSK Company Profile

GSK (GlaxoSmithKline plc) is a London-headquartered, multinational pharmaceutical and healthcare company formed through the 2000 merger of Glaxo Wellcome and SmithKline Beecham. The company is dual-listed and operates globally, developing, manufacturing and commercializing prescription medicines, vaccines and specialty treatments. Over its history GSK has evolved through portfolio reshaping and strategic transactions to focus on science-led pharmaceuticals and vaccines.

GSK’s core activities include research and development of therapies and vaccines across a range of therapeutic areas, commercial manufacturing, and global marketing.