Provident Investment Management Inc. Boosts Stock Position in GSK plc (NYSE:GSK)

Provident Investment Management Inc. boosted its position in shares of GSK plc (NYSE:GSK) by 16.7% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 21,675 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock after acquiring an additional 3,100 shares during the quarter. Provident Investment Management Inc.’s holdings in GSK were worth $733,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Sunbelt Securities Inc. grew its holdings in shares of GSK by 73.8% in the third quarter. Sunbelt Securities Inc. now owns 711 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $29,000 after purchasing an additional 302 shares in the last quarter. Indiana Trust & Investment Management Co increased its position in shares of GSK by 200.0% during the fourth quarter. Indiana Trust & Investment Management Co now owns 750 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock worth $25,000 after acquiring an additional 500 shares during the period. Crews Bank & Trust acquired a new stake in shares of GSK in the fourth quarter valued at $26,000. ST Germain D J Co. Inc. boosted its holdings in GSK by 195.5% in the fourth quarter. ST Germain D J Co. Inc. now owns 789 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $27,000 after purchasing an additional 522 shares during the period. Finally, Sierra Ocean LLC purchased a new position in GSK in the fourth quarter valued at $32,000. 15.74% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

GSK Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:GSK opened at $39.03 on Friday. GSK plc has a one year low of $31.72 and a one year high of $45.93. The stock has a market capitalization of $80.78 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 24.55, a PEG ratio of 1.12 and a beta of 0.56. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $37.59 and a 200-day simple moving average of $36.64. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.12, a quick ratio of 0.52 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 EPS 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 predict that GSK plc will post 4.14 EPS for the current year.

GSK Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, April 10th. Shareholders of record on Friday, February 21st will be given a dividend of $0.3932 per share. This is a boost from GSK’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.39. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, February 21st. This represents a $1.57 annualized dividend and a yield of 4.03%. GSK’s payout ratio is presently 98.74%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities research analysts have issued reports on GSK shares. StockNews.com raised GSK from a “buy” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Friday, February 7th. Morgan Stanley started coverage on shares of GSK in a research note on Wednesday, February 12th. They issued an “equal weight” rating for the company. Seven analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and four have assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, GSK has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $43.25.

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.