GSK plc (NYSE:GSK) Stake Boosted by Letko Brosseau & Associates Inc.

Letko Brosseau & Associates Inc. increased its holdings in GSK plc (NYSE:GSK) by 32.5% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 1,623,203 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock after buying an additional 398,433 shares during the quarter. Letko Brosseau & Associates Inc.’s holdings in GSK were worth $54,897,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Grimes & Company Inc. bought a new position in GSK in the 4th quarter worth approximately $4,731,000. Strategic Financial Concepts LLC bought a new position in GSK in the 4th quarter worth approximately $4,033,000. Kempner Capital Management Inc. grew its holdings in GSK by 142.7% in the 4th quarter. Kempner Capital Management Inc. now owns 183,080 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock worth $6,192,000 after buying an additional 107,648 shares in the last quarter. Stockman Wealth Management Inc. grew its holdings in GSK by 3.7% in the 4th quarter. Stockman Wealth Management Inc. now owns 217,200 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock worth $7,346,000 after buying an additional 7,683 shares in the last quarter. Finally, MADDEN SECURITIES Corp bought a new position in GSK in the 4th quarter worth approximately $2,957,000. 15.74% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

GSK Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:GSK opened at $36.63 on Monday. GSK plc has a one year low of $31.72 and a one year high of $45.93. The stock has a fifty day moving average of $37.65 and a 200-day moving average of $35.97. The company has a market capitalization of $75.58 billion, a PE ratio of 23.04, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.12 and a beta of 0.51. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.12, a quick ratio of 0.52 and a current ratio of 0.78.

GSK (NYSE:GSK) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, April 30th. The pharmaceutical company reported $1.13 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.08 by $0.05. GSK had a return on equity of 48.59% and a net margin of 8.13%. The company had revenue of $10.06 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $7.52 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $0.43 EPS. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 2.1% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, equities analysts anticipate that GSK plc will post 4.14 EPS for the current fiscal year.

GSK Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, July 10th. Stockholders of record on Friday, May 16th will be given a dividend of $0.4216 per share. This represents a $1.69 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 4.60%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, May 16th. This is an increase from GSK’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.39. GSK’s dividend payout ratio is 86.60%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of brokerages recently issued reports on GSK. Hsbc Global Res raised GSK to a “strong sell” rating in a report on Monday, April 28th. StockNews.com upgraded GSK from a “buy” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, April 24th. BNP Paribas assumed coverage on GSK in a research report on Tuesday, April 15th. They issued a “neutral” rating and a $35.25 target price for the company. Finally, Morgan Stanley assumed coverage on GSK in a research report on Wednesday, February 12th. They issued an “equal weight” rating for the company. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have assigned a hold rating and four have issued a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, GSK has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $40.58.

GSK Company Profile

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.