Figure 8 Investment Strategies LLC Buys New Position in GSK plc (NYSE:GSK)

Figure 8 Investment Strategies LLC purchased a new position in GSK plc (NYSE:GSK) in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm purchased 14,456 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock, valued at approximately $489,000.

Several other large investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in GSK. FMR LLC lifted its position 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 during the period. Fisher Asset Management LLC raised its stake 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 worth $759,425,000 after buying an additional 870,449 shares in the last quarter. Clifford Capital Partners LLC lifted its holdings in GSK by 14.3% in the third 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 during the period. Cerity Partners LLC boosted its position in GSK by 61.8% during the 3rd quarter. Cerity Partners LLC now owns 433,628 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $17,728,000 after acquiring an additional 165,556 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Natixis Advisors LLC grew its holdings in shares of GSK by 20.0% during the 3rd quarter. Natixis Advisors LLC now owns 500,495 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock worth $20,460,000 after acquiring an additional 83,433 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 15.74% of the company’s stock.

GSK Stock Up 1.3 %

Shares of GSK stock opened at $36.59 on Friday. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $34.35 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $37.50. The stock has a market capitalization of $75.82 billion, a PE ratio of 23.01, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.42 and a beta of 0.64. GSK plc has a 52-week low of $31.72 and a 52-week high of $45.92. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.12, a quick ratio of 0.53 and a current ratio of 0.78.

GSK (NYSE:GSK) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, February 5th. The pharmaceutical company reported $0.59 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.44 by $0.15. GSK had a net margin of 8.13% and a return on equity of 48.59%. On average, analysts anticipate that GSK plc will post 4.07 EPS for the current fiscal year.

GSK Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, April 10th. Investors of record on Friday, February 21st will be given a dividend of $0.3932 per share. This is an increase from GSK’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.39. The ex-dividend date is Friday, February 21st. This represents a $1.57 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 4.30%. GSK’s dividend payout ratio is 93.08%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research analysts have recently commented on the company. StockNews.com upgraded GSK from a “buy” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Friday, February 7th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft downgraded shares of GSK from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Friday, November 15th. Jefferies Financial Group lowered shares of GSK from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and decreased their price target for the stock from $53.00 to $39.50 in a research note on Tuesday, November 12th. Guggenheim lowered shares of GSK from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating in a research note on Thursday, October 31st. Finally, Morgan Stanley began coverage on shares of GSK in a research note on Wednesday. They set an “equal weight” rating for the company. Seven research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and four have issued a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company 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.