Brandywine Global Investment Management LLC Cuts Stake in GSK plc (NYSE:GSK)

Brandywine Global Investment Management LLC cut its stake in shares of GSK plc (NYSE:GSK) by 0.4% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 1,597,997 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock after selling 6,499 shares during the quarter. Brandywine Global Investment Management LLC’s holdings in GSK were worth $54,044,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other large investors have also recently modified their holdings of the company. Dorsey & Whitney Trust CO LLC lifted its stake in shares of GSK by 2.5% in the 4th quarter. Dorsey & Whitney Trust CO LLC now owns 11,506 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $389,000 after purchasing an additional 278 shares during the last quarter. Sunbelt Securities Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of GSK by 73.8% in the 3rd quarter. Sunbelt Securities Inc. now owns 711 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock worth $29,000 after acquiring an additional 302 shares during the last quarter. Rehmann Capital Advisory Group boosted its stake in shares of GSK by 6.3% during the 3rd quarter. Rehmann Capital Advisory Group now owns 5,608 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock worth $232,000 after purchasing an additional 332 shares during the period. GC Wealth Management RIA LLC grew its holdings in GSK by 2.6% during the 4th quarter. GC Wealth Management RIA LLC now owns 14,009 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $474,000 after purchasing an additional 353 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Jacobi Capital Management LLC raised its position in GSK by 3.9% in the 4th quarter. Jacobi Capital Management LLC now owns 10,403 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock worth $352,000 after purchasing an additional 389 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 15.74% of the company’s stock.

GSK Stock Performance

GSK stock opened at $38.74 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.12, a current ratio of 0.78 and a quick ratio of 0.52. The company has a market capitalization of $80.19 billion, a P/E ratio of 24.37, a PEG ratio of 1.12 and a beta of 0.58. The business has a 50-day moving average price of $37.22 and a 200 day moving average price of $36.74. GSK plc has a 1-year low of $31.72 and a 1-year high of $45.93.

GSK (NYSE:GSK) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, February 5th. The pharmaceutical company reported $0.59 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.44 by $0.15. GSK had a return on equity of 48.59% and a net margin of 8.13%. As a group, equities research analysts forecast that GSK plc will post 4.14 EPS for the current fiscal year.

GSK Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, April 10th. Investors of record on Friday, February 21st will be paid a dividend of $0.3932 per share. This represents a $1.57 annualized dividend and a yield of 4.06%. This is an increase from GSK’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.39. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, February 21st. GSK’s payout ratio is 98.74%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities research analysts have recently weighed in on GSK shares. StockNews.com upgraded GSK from a “buy” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Friday, February 7th. Morgan Stanley initiated coverage on GSK in a research note on Wednesday, February 12th. They issued an “equal weight” rating on the stock. Seven equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and four have given a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $43.25.

GSK Company 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.