Zacks Research Has Pessimistic Outlook of GSK Q1 Earnings

GSK plc (NYSE:GSK) – Stock analysts at Zacks Research dropped their Q1 2025 earnings per share (EPS) estimates for GSK in a research report issued to clients and investors on Wednesday, December 11th. Zacks Research analyst E. Bagri now forecasts that the pharmaceutical company will earn $1.10 per share for the quarter, down from their prior forecast of $1.11. The consensus estimate for GSK’s current full-year earnings is $4.02 per share. Zacks Research also issued estimates for GSK’s Q3 2025 earnings at $1.33 EPS, Q4 2025 earnings at $0.79 EPS, FY2025 earnings at $4.24 EPS and FY2026 earnings at $4.73 EPS.

A number of other brokerages have also weighed in on GSK. StockNews.com raised shares of GSK from a “buy” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Thursday. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft cut GSK from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Friday, November 15th. Barclays raised GSK to a “hold” rating in a research report on Tuesday, August 27th. Guggenheim lowered GSK from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating in a research report on Thursday, October 31st. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group downgraded GSK from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and decreased their price objective for the stock from $53.00 to $39.50 in a report on Tuesday, November 12th. Seven analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and four have issued a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, GSK presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $43.25.

GSK Stock Performance

NYSE:GSK opened at $33.95 on Friday. 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 has a twelve month low of $32.83 and a twelve month high of $45.92. The stock has a market cap of $70.36 billion, a P/E ratio of 22.05, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.54 and a beta of 0.64. The firm’s fifty day simple moving average is $36.18 and its 200 day simple moving average is $39.25.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On GSK

Hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. FMR LLC increased its holdings in shares of GSK by 8.3% in the 3rd quarter. FMR LLC now owns 29,008,928 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock worth $1,185,885,000 after purchasing an additional 2,224,345 shares in the last quarter. Fisher Asset Management LLC boosted its position in shares of GSK by 4.9% during the third quarter. Fisher Asset Management LLC now owns 18,576,930 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $759,425,000 after buying an additional 870,449 shares during the last quarter. Clifford Capital Partners LLC increased its holdings in GSK by 14.3% in the 3rd quarter. Clifford Capital Partners LLC now owns 409,669 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock worth $16,747,000 after buying an additional 51,378 shares in the last quarter. Cerity Partners LLC raised its position in GSK by 61.8% in the 3rd quarter. Cerity Partners LLC now owns 433,628 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock worth $17,728,000 after buying an additional 165,556 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Natixis Advisors LLC lifted its stake in GSK by 20.0% during the 3rd quarter. Natixis Advisors LLC now owns 500,495 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $20,460,000 after acquiring an additional 83,433 shares during the period. 15.74% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Buying and Selling at GSK

In other news, major shareholder Plc Gsk purchased 2,791,930 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, September 27th. The shares were purchased at an average price of $8.00 per share, for a total transaction of $22,335,440.00. Following the completion of the acquisition, the insider now directly owns 16,775,691 shares in the company, valued at $134,205,528. This represents a 19.97 % increase in their position. The purchase was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. 10.00% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

GSK Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, January 9th. Investors of record on Friday, November 15th will be given a dividend of $0.3928 per share. This represents a $1.57 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 4.63%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, November 15th. This is a positive change from GSK’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.38. GSK’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 99.35%.

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.