GSK PLC Sponsored ADR (NYSE:GSK) Receives Consensus Rating of “Reduce” from Brokerages

Shares of GSK PLC Sponsored ADR (NYSE:GSK) have been given an average recommendation of “Reduce” by the eleven analysts that are covering the company, Marketbeat.com reports. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell recommendation, six have given a hold recommendation and two have given a buy recommendation to the company. The average 1 year price objective among analysts that have issued ratings on the stock in the last year is $44.1250.

GSK has been the subject of a number of research reports. Barclays cut GSK from an “equal weight” rating to an “underweight” rating in a research note on Tuesday, January 6th. Weiss Ratings reiterated a “buy (b)” rating on shares of GSK in a research report on Monday, December 29th. Cfra set a $53.00 price target on GSK in a research note on Thursday, October 30th. TD Cowen reaffirmed a “hold” rating on shares of GSK in a research note on Monday, February 9th. Finally, Citigroup reiterated a “neutral” rating on shares of GSK in a research report on Monday, February 9th.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, major shareholder Plc Gsk bought 1,470,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, December 11th. The shares were purchased at an average cost of $19.00 per share, with a total value of $27,930,000.00. Following the acquisition, the insider owned 18,245,691 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $346,668,129. This represents a 8.76% increase in their ownership of the stock. The purchase was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. 10.00% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On GSK

Hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Bard Financial Services Inc. lifted its holdings in GSK by 17.4% in the third quarter. Bard Financial Services Inc. now owns 158,145 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $6,826,000 after buying an additional 23,400 shares during the period. Brighton Jones LLC acquired a new stake in GSK during the 4th quarter worth about $528,000. Arkadios Wealth Advisors raised its position in shares of GSK by 10.9% in the 2nd quarter. Arkadios Wealth Advisors now owns 68,760 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock worth $2,640,000 after acquiring an additional 6,734 shares in the last quarter. Quantbot Technologies LP lifted its stake in shares of GSK by 184.6% in the 2nd quarter. Quantbot Technologies LP now owns 138,898 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $5,334,000 after purchasing an additional 90,097 shares during the period. Finally, Fisher Asset Management LLC lifted its stake in shares of GSK by 4.4% in the 2nd quarter. Fisher Asset Management LLC now owns 31,338,405 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $1,203,395,000 after purchasing an additional 1,306,590 shares during the period. 15.74% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

GSK Price Performance

GSK stock opened at $60.85 on Wednesday. The stock has a market cap of $124.04 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 16.45, a P/E/G ratio of 3.57 and a beta of 0.46. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.92, a current ratio of 0.82 and a quick ratio of 0.54. The company has a 50 day simple moving average of $51.42 and a 200 day simple moving average of $46.04. GSK has a 1 year low of $32.38 and a 1 year high of $61.03.

GSK Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, April 9th. Stockholders of record on Friday, February 20th will be issued a dividend of $0.4856 per share. This represents a $1.94 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.2%. This is a boost from GSK’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.42. The ex-dividend date is Friday, February 20th. GSK’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 51.62%.

About GSK

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.