GSK (LON:GSK) Shares Pass Above 200-Day Moving Average - Here's Why

Key Points

• GSK crossed above its 200-day moving average (200 DMA GBX 1,613.50), trading as high as GBX 1,896 and last at GBX 1,848 on volume of 5,086,101 shares.
• Analyst views are mixed with a consensus rating of Hold and a consensus price target of GBX 1,762 (two Buys, two Holds, one Sell); Jefferies keeps a GBX 2,100 buy target while Berenberg raised its target to GBX 1,660.
• Insiders made recent purchases (Jonathan Symonds 1,650 shares at GBX 1,810; Wendy Becker 441 shares at GBX 1,809), though insiders own only about 0.20% of the stock.

GSK plc (LON:GSK - Get Free Report) crossed above its two hundred day moving average during trading on Thursday . The stock has a two hundred day moving average of GBX 1,613.50 and traded as high as GBX 1,896. GSK shares last traded at GBX 1,848, with a volume of 5,086,101 shares traded.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research analysts have recently commented on GSK shares. Berenberg Bank lifted their price target on GSK from GBX 1,600 to GBX 1,660 and gave the stock a "hold" rating in a report on Monday, November 24th. Jefferies Financial Group restated a "buy" rating and set a GBX 2,100 price objective on shares of GSK in a research report on Wednesday, January 7th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reiterated an "underweight" rating on shares of GSK in a report on Wednesday, January 7th. Finally, Shore Capital reissued a "buy" rating on shares of GSK in a research note on Thursday, January 8th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, two have issued a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of GBX 1,762.

GSK Trading Down 1.7%

The company has a market cap of £74.55 billion, a PE ratio of 13.89, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.24 and a beta of 0.31. The company's 50 day simple moving average is GBX 1,816.90 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is GBX 1,613.50. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 114.64, a current ratio of 0.81 and a quick ratio of 0.73.

GSK (LON:GSK - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, October 29th. The company reported GBX 55 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter. GSK had a net margin of 8.02% and a return on equity of 18.08%. As a group, sell-side analysts anticipate that GSK plc will post 175.980975 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, insider Jonathan Symonds acquired 1,650 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Monday, December 22nd. The stock was acquired at an average cost of GBX 1,810 per share, with a total value of £29,865. Also, insider Wendy Becker acquired 441 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, December 19th. The stock was purchased at an average price of GBX 1,809 per share, for a total transaction of £7,977.69. 0.20% of the stock is owned by insiders.

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. The company offers shingles, meningitis, respiratory syncytial virus, flu, polio, influenza, and pandemic vaccines. It also provides medicines for HIV, oncology, respiratory/immunology, and other specialty medicine products, as well as inhaled medicines for asthma and chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, and antibiotics for infections.

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