&Partners Makes New Investment in GSK plc (NYSE:GSK)

&Partners purchased a new stake in GSK plc (NYSE:GSK) during the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The firm purchased 6,799 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock, valued at approximately $299,000.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in the company. Versant Capital Management Inc lifted its stake in GSK by 2,816.7% in the fourth quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc now owns 700 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock worth $26,000 after acquiring an additional 676 shares during the last quarter. BKM Wealth Management LLC acquired a new stake in shares of GSK in the 4th quarter valued at $32,000. Richardson Financial Services Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of GSK during the 4th quarter worth $40,000. Jones Financial Companies Lllp grew its stake in shares of GSK by 62.2% during the third quarter. Jones Financial Companies Lllp now owns 1,327 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock worth $48,000 after purchasing an additional 509 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Princeton Global Asset Management LLC grew its stake in shares of GSK by 54.3% during the fourth quarter. Princeton Global Asset Management LLC now owns 1,515 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock worth $56,000 after purchasing an additional 533 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 15.74% of the company’s stock.

GSK Stock Performance

Shares of GSK stock opened at $40.48 on Monday. GSK plc has a 1 year low of $33.67 and a 1 year high of $45.92. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.15, a quick ratio of 0.58 and a current ratio of 0.87. The firm has a market cap of $83.89 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 14.67, a PEG ratio of 1.23 and a beta of 0.66. The stock’s 50-day moving average is $42.55 and its two-hundred day moving average is $41.12.

GSK (NYSE:GSK) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, May 1st. The pharmaceutical company reported $1.09 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.94 by $0.15. GSK had a return on equity of 51.54% and a net margin of 14.62%. The company had revenue of $9.34 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $8.98 billion. Analysts predict that GSK plc will post 4.11 earnings per share for the current year.

GSK Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, July 11th. Investors of record on Friday, May 17th will be given a $0.3762 dividend. This is an increase from GSK’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.36. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, May 16th. This represents a $1.50 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.72%. GSK’s dividend payout ratio is 53.26%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of analysts have issued reports on GSK shares. Guggenheim raised GSK from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, March 4th. The Goldman Sachs Group began coverage on GSK in a research note on Thursday, May 30th. They set a “neutral” rating and a $47.00 target price for the company. Finally, Berenberg Bank upgraded shares of GSK to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Thursday. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, two have given a hold rating, three have assigned a buy rating and two have issued a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, GSK presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $47.00.

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.