Ameritas Advisory Services LLC Sells 17,908 Shares of GSK PLC Sponsored ADR (NYSE:GSK)

Ameritas Advisory Services LLC decreased its position in GSK PLC Sponsored ADR (NYSE:GSK - Free Report) by 51.2% during the first quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 17,047 shares of the pharmaceutical company's stock after selling 17,908 shares during the quarter. Ameritas Advisory Services LLC's holdings in GSK were worth $660,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of the company. FMR LLC increased its holdings in GSK by 82.1% during the 4th quarter. FMR LLC now owns 52,823,032 shares of the pharmaceutical company's stock valued at $1,786,475,000 after purchasing an additional 23,814,104 shares during the period. Primecap Management Co. CA lifted its holdings in GSK by 70.1% in the 4th quarter. Primecap Management Co. CA now owns 25,261,660 shares of the pharmaceutical company's stock worth $854,349,000 after buying an additional 10,407,905 shares during the period. Voloridge Investment Management LLC grew its position in shares of GSK by 1,360.4% in the 4th quarter. Voloridge Investment Management LLC now owns 2,165,043 shares of the pharmaceutical company's stock worth $73,222,000 after buying an additional 2,016,795 shares during the last quarter. Bridgewater Associates LP increased its stake in shares of GSK by 132.7% during the fourth quarter. Bridgewater Associates LP now owns 2,247,691 shares of the pharmaceutical company's stock valued at $76,017,000 after buying an additional 1,281,855 shares during the period. Finally, Woodline Partners LP bought a new position in shares of GSK during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $36,665,000. 15.74% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

GSK Stock Performance

Shares of GSK stock opened at $38.52 on Thursday. The company has a current ratio of 0.87, a quick ratio of 0.58 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.21. The company's fifty day moving average price is $38.97 and its 200-day moving average price is $37.03. The stock has a market cap of $78.86 billion, a PE ratio of 19.86, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.36 and a beta of 0.50. GSK PLC Sponsored ADR has a 12 month low of $31.72 and a 12 month high of $44.67.

GSK (NYSE:GSK - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, April 30th. The pharmaceutical company reported $1.13 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.08 by $0.05. GSK had a net margin of 9.89% and a return on equity of 48.82%. The business had revenue of $10.06 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $7.52 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $0.43 earnings per share. GSK's quarterly revenue was up 2.1% on a year-over-year basis. On average, equities analysts expect that GSK PLC Sponsored ADR will post 4.14 EPS for the current fiscal year.

GSK Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, July 10th. Investors of record on Friday, May 16th will be given a dividend of $0.4216 per share. This represents a $1.69 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 4.38%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, May 16th. This is a positive change from GSK's previous quarterly dividend of $0.39. GSK's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 87.11%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several analysts recently weighed in on GSK shares. BNP Paribas started 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. Wall Street Zen lowered shares of GSK from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Friday, May 30th. Berenberg Bank reiterated a "hold" rating on shares of GSK in a research report on Tuesday, June 3rd. Finally, Hsbc Global Res raised shares of GSK to a "strong sell" rating in a research note on Monday, April 28th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have assigned a hold rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, GSK has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $37.38.

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.

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