LMR Partners LLP Trims Position in GSK plc (NYSE:GSK)

LMR Partners LLP reduced its position in GSK plc (NYSE:GSK) by 39.4% in the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 2,019,192 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock after selling 1,312,266 shares during the quarter. GSK makes up about 0.7% of LMR Partners LLP’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 8th biggest holding. LMR Partners LLP’s holdings in GSK were worth $82,545,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of GSK. Equity Investment Corp raised its position in shares of GSK by 1.8% during the 3rd quarter. Equity Investment Corp now owns 3,496,254 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $142,927,000 after acquiring an additional 63,052 shares in the last quarter. Thrivent Financial for Lutherans lifted its position in shares of GSK by 3.4% in the 3rd quarter. Thrivent Financial for Lutherans now owns 53,348 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock worth $2,181,000 after buying an additional 1,737 shares during the last quarter. Natixis Advisors LLC boosted its holdings in shares of GSK by 20.0% in the 3rd quarter. Natixis Advisors LLC now owns 500,495 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $20,460,000 after buying an additional 83,433 shares during the period. Valley Wealth Managers Inc. bought a new stake in shares of GSK during the 3rd quarter valued at about $62,000. Finally, Arjuna Capital grew its holdings in shares of GSK by 144.3% during the third quarter. Arjuna Capital now owns 78,934 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $3,227,000 after purchasing an additional 46,621 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 15.74% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several brokerages have weighed in on GSK. Barclays raised GSK to a “hold” rating in a research report on Tuesday, August 27th. Guggenheim downgraded shares of GSK from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating in a research report on Thursday, October 31st. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft cut shares of GSK from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Friday. Argus raised GSK to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, August 7th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group lowered 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 research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and three have assigned a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, GSK currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $43.25.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other GSK news, major shareholder Plc Gsk purchased 2,791,930 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on 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 transaction, the insider now owns 16,775,691 shares in the company, valued at $134,205,528. This represents a 19.97 % increase in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. 10.00% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

GSK Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:GSK opened at $33.35 on Monday. The stock has a market cap of $69.12 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 21.66, a PEG ratio of 1.29 and a beta of 0.66. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.98, a current ratio of 0.81 and a quick ratio of 0.53. GSK plc has a 12 month low of $32.83 and a 12 month high of $45.92. The stock’s 50 day moving average price is $39.08 and its 200 day moving average price is $40.68.

GSK Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, January 9th. Investors of record on Friday, November 15th will be issued a dividend of $0.3928 per share. This is a positive change from GSK’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.38. This represents a $1.57 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 4.71%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, November 15th. GSK’s payout ratio is presently 98.70%.

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.