Argent Advisors Inc. Acquires 2,529 Shares of GSK plc (NYSE:GSK)

Argent Advisors Inc. raised its holdings in GSK plc (NYSE:GSK) by 9.9% during the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 28,159 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock after buying an additional 2,529 shares during the period. Argent Advisors Inc.’s holdings in GSK were worth $1,084,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. JTC Employer Solutions Trustee Ltd boosted its position in GSK by 71.3% in the first quarter. JTC Employer Solutions Trustee Ltd now owns 21,141,012 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $909,063,000 after buying an additional 8,800,822 shares in the last quarter. Fisher Asset Management LLC boosted its position in shares of GSK by 10.8% during the 4th quarter. Fisher Asset Management LLC now owns 15,065,558 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $558,330,000 after purchasing an additional 1,465,165 shares in the last quarter. Primecap Management Co. CA increased its stake in shares of GSK by 0.3% in the 4th quarter. Primecap Management Co. CA now owns 12,089,370 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $448,032,000 after acquiring an additional 30,600 shares in the last quarter. Mondrian Investment Partners LTD boosted its position in shares of GSK by 37.8% during the 1st quarter. Mondrian Investment Partners LTD now owns 5,510,840 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock worth $236,250,000 after purchasing an additional 1,512,442 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Equity Investment Corp grew its stake in GSK by 4.8% in the first quarter. Equity Investment Corp now owns 3,398,571 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $145,697,000 after acquiring an additional 155,312 shares during the period. 15.74% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

GSK Trading Up 0.3 %

GSK traded up $0.15 during trading on Friday, hitting $43.89. 3,129,092 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 3,572,154. The firm has a market capitalization of $90.96 billion, a P/E ratio of 15.90, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.32 and a beta of 0.64. GSK plc has a 12-month low of $33.67 and a 12-month high of $45.92. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.99, a current ratio of 0.82 and a quick ratio of 0.58. The firm has a 50-day moving average of $40.04 and a 200 day moving average of $41.56.

GSK Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, October 10th. Stockholders of record on Friday, August 16th will be issued a dividend of $0.3843 per share. This represents a $1.54 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.50%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, August 16th. This is a boost from GSK’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.38. GSK’s payout ratio is 54.71%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research analysts recently weighed in on GSK shares. UBS Group cut shares of GSK from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating in a report on Monday, July 8th. Argus raised GSK to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, August 7th. Citigroup upgraded GSK to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Monday, June 24th. Berenberg Bank raised shares of GSK to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Thursday, June 20th. Finally, Barclays upgraded shares of GSK to a “hold” rating in a report on Tuesday. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, two have issued a buy rating and four have issued a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Buy” and an average target price of $50.00.

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.