Virtu Financial LLC Decreases Holdings in GSK plc (NYSE:GSK)

Virtu Financial LLC lowered its holdings in GSK plc (NYSE:GSK) by 31.4% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the SEC. The fund owned 20,272 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock after selling 9,270 shares during the quarter. Virtu Financial LLC’s holdings in GSK were worth $686,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Lee Danner & Bass Inc. acquired a new stake in GSK during the fourth quarter worth approximately $39,000. Whittier Trust Co. of Nevada Inc. grew its position in shares of GSK by 23.0% in the 4th quarter. Whittier Trust Co. of Nevada Inc. now owns 2,233 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $75,000 after buying an additional 417 shares during the last quarter. Whittier Trust Co. raised its stake in GSK by 133.7% during the 4th quarter. Whittier Trust Co. now owns 38,150 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock worth $1,290,000 after acquiring an additional 21,826 shares in the last quarter. GM Advisory Group LLC lifted its position in GSK by 19.3% in the fourth quarter. GM Advisory Group LLC now owns 8,035 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $272,000 after acquiring an additional 1,300 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Koss Olinger Consulting LLC boosted its stake in GSK by 8.9% in the fourth quarter. Koss Olinger Consulting LLC now owns 67,969 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $2,299,000 after acquiring an additional 5,583 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 15.74% of the company’s stock.

GSK Stock Down 1.7 %

GSK opened at $38.58 on Tuesday. The business has a 50 day moving average price of $36.77 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $36.84. GSK plc has a 52 week low of $31.72 and a 52 week high of $45.93. The company has a market cap of $79.86 billion, a PE ratio of 24.27, a P/E/G ratio of 1.12 and a beta of 0.58. The company has a quick ratio of 0.52, a current ratio of 0.78 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.12.

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

GSK Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, April 10th. Investors of record on Friday, February 21st will be issued a dividend of $0.3932 per share. This is a boost from GSK’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.39. This represents a $1.57 annualized dividend and a yield of 4.08%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, February 21st. GSK’s dividend payout ratio is currently 98.74%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several analysts have recently weighed in on the company. StockNews.com raised GSK from a “buy” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Friday, February 7th. Morgan Stanley initiated coverage on GSK in a research note on Wednesday, February 12th. They issued an “equal weight” rating for the company. Seven research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and four have given a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, GSK currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $43.25.

GSK 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.