GSK plc (NYSE:GSK) Receives Average Recommendation of “Moderate Buy” from Brokerages

GSK plc (NYSE:GSK) has received an average rating of “Moderate Buy” from the ten ratings firms that are currently covering the stock, Marketbeat.com reports. Seven investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold recommendation and three have issued a strong buy recommendation on the company. The average 12 month price target among analysts that have issued a report on the stock in the last year is $43.25.

A number of equities research analysts have issued reports on the company. StockNews.com raised GSK from a “buy” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Friday, February 7th. Morgan Stanley started coverage on GSK in a report on Wednesday, February 12th. They set an “equal weight” rating for the company.

GSK Stock Down 0.5 %

GSK opened at $39.22 on Friday. GSK has a 12 month low of $31.72 and a 12 month high of $45.93. The business has a 50-day moving average of $36.66 and a two-hundred day moving average of $36.92. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.12, a current ratio of 0.78 and a quick ratio of 0.52. The stock has a market capitalization of $81.18 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 24.67, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.12 and a beta of 0.58.

GSK (NYSE:GSK) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, February 5th. The pharmaceutical company reported $0.59 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.44 by $0.15. GSK had a net margin of 8.13% and a return on equity of 48.59%. On average, research analysts expect that GSK will post 4.14 earnings per share for the current year.

GSK Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, April 10th. Shareholders of record on Friday, February 21st will be issued a $0.3932 dividend. This represents a $1.57 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 4.01%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, February 21st. This is a boost from GSK’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.39. GSK’s dividend payout ratio is currently 98.74%.

Institutional Trading of GSK

A number of hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in GSK. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC grew its stake in shares of GSK by 8.1% during the fourth quarter. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC now owns 174,688 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $5,908,000 after acquiring an additional 13,039 shares in the last quarter. Northstar Financial Companies Inc. purchased a new position in GSK in the fourth quarter valued at about $228,000. Aegis Wealth Management LLC acquired a new stake in GSK during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $286,000. Probity Advisors Inc. increased its holdings in GSK by 58.8% during the 4th quarter. Probity Advisors Inc. now owns 15,120 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock worth $511,000 after purchasing an additional 5,599 shares during the last quarter. Finally, BridgePort Financial Solutions LLC acquired a new position in shares of GSK in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $310,000. Hedge funds and other 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.