GSK PLC Sponsored ADR (NYSE:GSK) Given Average Rating of “Reduce” by Brokerages

Shares of GSK PLC Sponsored ADR (NYSE:GSK) have received an average rating of “Reduce” from the ten research firms that are presently covering the company, Marketbeat.com reports. Three analysts have rated the stock with a sell recommendation, five have issued a hold recommendation and two have issued a buy recommendation on the company. The average 1-year price objective among analysts that have issued a report on the stock in the last year is $53.00.

A number of analysts recently commented on GSK shares. Wall Street Zen cut shares of GSK from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Saturday, March 7th. TD Cowen reiterated a “hold” rating on shares of GSK in a research note on Monday, February 9th. Barclays reiterated an “underweight” rating on shares of GSK in a research note on Friday, February 20th. Weiss Ratings upgraded shares of GSK from a “hold (c+)” rating to a “buy (b)” rating in a research note on Friday, May 1st. Finally, Citigroup reiterated a “neutral” rating on shares of GSK in a research note on Monday, February 9th.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On GSK

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in GSK. Fisher Asset Management LLC lifted its stake in shares of GSK by 3.0% during the fourth quarter. Fisher Asset Management LLC now owns 33,195,985 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock worth $1,627,931,000 after buying an additional 968,370 shares during the period. BI Asset Management Fondsmaeglerselskab A S lifted its stake in shares of GSK by 2,032.8% during the fourth quarter. BI Asset Management Fondsmaeglerselskab A S now owns 854,331 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock worth $41,896,000 after buying an additional 814,275 shares during the period. PFA Pension Forsikringsaktieselskab acquired a new stake in shares of GSK during the fourth quarter worth $6,385,000. Align Financial LLC acquired a new stake in shares of GSK during the fourth quarter worth $5,628,000. Finally, Leuthold Group LLC acquired a new stake in shares of GSK during the fourth quarter worth $4,922,000. 15.74% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

GSK Trading Down 0.6%

Shares of NYSE:GSK opened at $51.27 on Friday. The business’s 50-day moving average is $53.73 and its 200 day moving average is $52.44. The firm has a market capitalization of $104.03 billion, a P/E ratio of 13.32, a P/E/G ratio of 2.64 and a beta of 0.38. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.80, a current ratio of 0.79 and a quick ratio of 0.52. GSK has a 1 year low of $35.45 and a 1 year high of $61.69.

GSK Cuts Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, July 9th. Stockholders of record on Friday, May 15th will be paid a dividend of $0.44 per share. This represents a $1.76 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.4%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, May 15th. GSK’s payout ratio is presently 47.01%.

About GSK

GSK (GlaxoSmithKline plc) is a London-headquartered, multinational pharmaceutical and healthcare company formed through the 2000 merger of Glaxo Wellcome and SmithKline Beecham. The company is dual-listed and operates globally, developing, manufacturing and commercializing prescription medicines, vaccines and specialty treatments. Over its history GSK has evolved through portfolio reshaping and strategic transactions to focus on science-led pharmaceuticals and vaccines.

GSK’s core activities include research and development of therapies and vaccines across a range of therapeutic areas, commercial manufacturing, and global marketing.