GSK (NYSE:GSK) Upgraded by StockNews.com to “Strong-Buy” Rating

StockNews.com upgraded shares of GSK (NYSE:GSK) from a buy rating to a strong-buy rating in a report released on Thursday morning.

A number of other equities research analysts have also weighed in on GSK. Jefferies Financial Group lowered shares of GSK from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and lowered their price objective for the stock from $53.00 to $39.50 in a report on Tuesday, November 12th. Barclays upgraded GSK to a “hold” rating in a report on Tuesday, August 27th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft cut GSK from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Friday, November 15th. Finally, Guggenheim cut shares of GSK from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating in a report on Thursday, October 31st. Seven research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and four have issued a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, GSK has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $43.25.

GSK Trading Down 0.8 %

Shares of GSK stock opened at $34.17 on Thursday. The firm has a market cap of $70.81 billion, a P/E ratio of 22.19, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.54 and a beta of 0.64. The company has a quick ratio of 0.53, a current ratio of 0.81 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.98. GSK has a 12-month low of $32.83 and a 12-month high of $45.92. The business has a 50-day moving average price of $36.28 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $39.36.

GSK Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, January 9th. Shareholders of record on Friday, November 15th will be issued a dividend of $0.3928 per share. This is an increase from GSK’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.38. The ex-dividend date is Friday, November 15th. This represents a $1.57 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 4.60%. GSK’s dividend payout ratio is 99.35%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, major shareholder Plc Gsk acquired 2,791,930 shares of GSK stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, September 27th. The stock was bought at an average price of $8.00 per share, with a total value of $22,335,440.00. Following the transaction, the insider now directly owns 16,775,691 shares in the company, valued at approximately $134,205,528. This represents a 19.97 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The acquisition was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. 10.00% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On GSK

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. DGS Capital Management LLC grew its position in GSK by 3.9% in the 3rd quarter. DGS Capital Management LLC now owns 34,438 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock worth $1,408,000 after purchasing an additional 1,304 shares during the period. Logan Capital Management Inc. grew its holdings in shares of GSK by 3.8% in the third quarter. Logan Capital Management Inc. now owns 83,923 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock worth $3,431,000 after acquiring an additional 3,083 shares during the period. Franklin Resources Inc. lifted its holdings in GSK by 8.6% in the third quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 235,348 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $9,052,000 after acquiring an additional 18,539 shares during the period. Optimist Retirement Group LLC boosted its position in GSK by 3.7% in the third quarter. Optimist Retirement Group LLC now owns 49,554 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock worth $2,026,000 after purchasing an additional 1,790 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB bought a new stake in shares of GSK during the 3rd quarter valued at about $787,000. Institutional investors own 15.74% of the company’s stock.

About GSK

GSK plc, together with its subsidiaries, engages in the research, development, and manufacture of vaccines, and specialty and general medicines to prevent and treat disease in the United Kingdom, the United States, and internationally. It operates through two segments, Commercial Operations and Total R&D.