GSK (NYSE:GSK) Rating Increased to Strong-Buy at StockNews.com

StockNews.com upgraded shares of GSK (NYSE:GSK) from a buy rating to a strong-buy rating in a report published on Monday.

GSK has been the topic of several other reports. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft lowered GSK from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Friday, November 15th. Jefferies Financial Group cut GSK from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and cut their price objective for the company from $53.00 to $39.50 in a report on Tuesday, November 12th. Finally, Guggenheim downgraded shares of GSK from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating in a research report on Thursday, October 31st. Seven research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and four have given a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $43.25.

GSK Trading Down 1.1 %

GSK opened at $32.71 on Monday. The firm’s fifty day moving average is $34.30 and its two-hundred day moving average is $38.12. The firm has a market cap of $67.79 billion, a PE ratio of 21.24, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.52 and a beta of 0.63. GSK has a twelve month low of $32.55 and a twelve month high of $45.92. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.98, a quick ratio of 0.53 and a current ratio of 0.81.

GSK Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, January 9th. Shareholders of record on Friday, November 15th were given a dividend of $0.3928 per share. This represents a $1.57 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 4.80%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, November 15th. This is a positive change from GSK’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.38. GSK’s dividend payout ratio is presently 95.45%.

Institutional Trading of GSK

Several large investors have recently modified their holdings of GSK. FMR LLC increased its stake 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 valued at $1,185,885,000 after purchasing an additional 2,224,345 shares during the last quarter. Fisher Asset Management LLC grew its position in GSK by 4.9% in 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 acquiring an additional 870,449 shares during the last quarter. Primecap Management Co. CA raised its stake in GSK by 2.4% during the third quarter. Primecap Management Co. CA now owns 14,853,755 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock worth $607,222,000 after acquiring an additional 342,365 shares in the last quarter. Provident Trust Co. lifted its holdings in shares of GSK by 1.7% in the third quarter. Provident Trust Co. now owns 3,953,602 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock worth $161,623,000 after acquiring an additional 66,765 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Hotchkis & Wiley Capital Management LLC boosted its stake in shares of GSK by 30.8% in the 3rd quarter. Hotchkis & Wiley Capital Management LLC now owns 3,542,143 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $144,803,000 after purchasing an additional 833,080 shares in the last quarter. 15.74% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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.