Merit Financial Group LLC Invests $805,000 in GSK plc (NYSE:GSK)

Merit Financial Group LLC bought a new position in GSK plc (NYSE:GSK - Free Report) during the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm bought 20,775 shares of the pharmaceutical company's stock, valued at approximately $805,000.

Several other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of GSK. Strategic Financial Concepts LLC bought a new stake in GSK in the 4th quarter valued at $4,033,000. Stockman Wealth Management Inc. raised its position in shares of GSK by 3.7% during the fourth quarter. Stockman Wealth Management Inc. now owns 217,200 shares of the pharmaceutical company's stock valued at $7,346,000 after buying an additional 7,683 shares during the last quarter. MADDEN SECURITIES Corp acquired a new position in shares of GSK during the fourth quarter valued at about $2,957,000. Columbia Asset Management bought a new stake in shares of GSK in the fourth quarter valued at about $233,000. Finally, Van ECK Associates Corp grew its position in GSK by 14.6% during the fourth quarter. Van ECK Associates Corp now owns 844,039 shares of the pharmaceutical company's stock worth $28,545,000 after buying an additional 107,529 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 15.74% of the company's stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities analysts have commented on the company. Wall Street Zen cut GSK from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Friday, May 30th. Berenberg Bank restated a "hold" rating on shares of GSK in a research note on Tuesday, June 3rd. Morgan Stanley began coverage on shares of GSK in a research note on Wednesday, February 12th. They set an "equal weight" rating on the stock. BNP Paribas initiated coverage on shares of GSK in a report on Tuesday, April 15th. They issued a "neutral" rating and a $35.25 price target on the stock. Finally, Hsbc Global Res raised shares of GSK to a "strong sell" rating in a report on Monday, April 28th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have given a hold rating and two have given a strong buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $37.38.

GSK Trading Down 0.8%

Shares of NYSE:GSK traded down $0.34 during trading on Monday, hitting $40.86. 3,918,193 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 4,821,676. The company has a current ratio of 0.78, a quick ratio of 0.52 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.12. The firm has a market cap of $83.74 billion, a P/E ratio of 25.70, a PEG ratio of 1.12 and a beta of 0.52. The firm has a 50-day moving average price of $37.59 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $36.43. GSK plc has a 1-year low of $31.72 and a 1-year high of $44.67.

GSK (NYSE:GSK - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, April 30th. The pharmaceutical company reported $1.13 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.08 by $0.05. GSK had a return on equity of 48.59% and a net margin of 8.13%. The business had revenue of $10.06 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $7.52 billion. During the same period last year, the company earned $0.43 EPS. The firm's revenue was up 2.1% on a year-over-year basis. Equities analysts predict that GSK plc will post 4.14 earnings per share for the current year.

GSK Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, July 10th. Stockholders of record on Friday, May 16th will be given a dividend of $0.4216 per share. This is a positive change from GSK's previous quarterly dividend of $0.39. This represents a $1.69 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 4.13%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, May 16th. GSK's payout ratio is presently 86.60%.

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.