Smithfield Trust Co Sells 3,558 Shares of GSK plc (NYSE:GSK)

Smithfield Trust Co reduced its holdings in GSK plc (NYSE:GSK) by 64.1% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 1,995 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock after selling 3,558 shares during the quarter. Smithfield Trust Co’s holdings in GSK were worth $68,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Sunbelt Securities Inc. boosted its position in GSK by 73.8% in the third quarter. Sunbelt Securities Inc. now owns 711 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock worth $29,000 after purchasing an additional 302 shares during the last quarter. Mesirow Financial Investment Management Inc. boosted its position in GSK by 2.0% in the third quarter. Mesirow Financial Investment Management Inc. now owns 16,693 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock worth $682,000 after purchasing an additional 323 shares during the last quarter. Rehmann Capital Advisory Group boosted its position in GSK by 6.3% in the third quarter. Rehmann Capital Advisory Group now owns 5,608 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock worth $232,000 after purchasing an additional 332 shares during the last quarter. Jacobi Capital Management LLC boosted its position in GSK by 3.9% in the fourth quarter. Jacobi Capital Management LLC now owns 10,403 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock worth $352,000 after purchasing an additional 389 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Bond & Devick Financial Network Inc. boosted its position in GSK by 5.4% in the third quarter. Bond & Devick Financial Network Inc. now owns 7,830 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock worth $320,000 after purchasing an additional 400 shares during the last quarter. 15.74% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

GSK Stock Up 0.9 %

Shares of NYSE GSK opened at $38.79 on Thursday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.12, a current ratio of 0.78 and a quick ratio of 0.52. GSK plc has a one year low of $31.72 and a one year high of $45.92. The stock has a market capitalization of $80.38 billion, a PE ratio of 24.39, a P/E/G ratio of 1.12 and a beta of 0.58. The business’s fifty day moving average price is $35.25 and its 200-day moving average price is $37.20.

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

GSK Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, April 10th. Investors of record on Friday, February 21st will be paid a dividend of $0.3932 per share. This represents a $1.57 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 4.05%. This is a positive change from GSK’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.39. The ex-dividend date is Friday, February 21st. GSK’s payout ratio is presently 98.74%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research analysts have weighed in on the company. Jefferies Financial Group cut GSK from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and cut their price objective for the stock from $53.00 to $39.50 in a research report on Tuesday, November 12th. Morgan Stanley initiated coverage on GSK in a research report on Wednesday, February 12th. They set an “equal weight” rating on the stock. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft cut GSK from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Friday, November 15th. Finally, StockNews.com raised GSK from a “buy” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Friday, February 7th. Seven equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and four have given a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $43.25.

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.