Citigroup Inc. Lowers Position in GSK plc (NYSE:GSK)

Citigroup Inc. reduced its position in shares of GSK plc (NYSE:GSK) by 70.8% in the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 190,960 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock after selling 462,116 shares during the period. Citigroup Inc.’s holdings in GSK were worth $7,806,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Primecap Management Co. CA raised its stake in shares of GSK by 13.9% during the 2nd quarter. Primecap Management Co. CA now owns 14,511,390 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock worth $558,689,000 after buying an additional 1,773,020 shares in the last quarter. Healthcare of Ontario Pension Plan Trust Fund acquired a new position in GSK during the second quarter worth $52,487,000. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP raised its position in GSK by 33.8% in the second quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 2,256,320 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock worth $86,875,000 after acquiring an additional 569,614 shares in the last quarter. Renaissance Technologies LLC lifted its holdings in GSK by 30.9% in the second quarter. Renaissance Technologies LLC now owns 2,347,993 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $90,398,000 after acquiring an additional 554,600 shares during the period. Finally, Armistice Capital LLC boosted its position in shares of GSK by 55.6% during the 2nd quarter. Armistice Capital LLC now owns 1,500,000 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock worth $57,750,000 after purchasing an additional 536,000 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 15.74% of the company’s stock.

Insider Activity at GSK

In other GSK news, major shareholder Plc Gsk bought 2,791,930 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, September 27th. The stock was purchased at an average cost of $8.00 per share, for a total transaction of $22,335,440.00. Following the completion of the purchase, the insider now owns 16,775,691 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $134,205,528. This trade represents a 19.97 % increase in their position. The purchase was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Insiders own 10.00% of the company’s stock.

GSK Stock Down 0.6 %

GSK opened at $34.13 on Friday. The business’s fifty day simple moving average is $37.29 and its 200 day simple moving average is $40.01. GSK plc has a 52 week low of $32.83 and a 52 week high of $45.92. The firm has a market cap of $70.74 billion, a P/E ratio of 22.16, a PEG ratio of 1.31 and a beta of 0.66. 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 Increases Dividend

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

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several brokerages recently commented on GSK. Argus upgraded shares of GSK to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, August 7th. Guggenheim downgraded shares of GSK from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating in a research report on Thursday, October 31st. Jefferies Financial Group cut GSK from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and lowered their price target for the stock from $53.00 to $39.50 in a report on Tuesday, November 12th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft cut GSK from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Friday, November 15th. Finally, Barclays raised GSK to a “hold” rating in a report on Tuesday, August 27th. Seven research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and three have assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $43.25.

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.