Meritage Portfolio Management Sells 3,655 Shares of GSK plc (NYSE:GSK)

Meritage Portfolio Management lessened its holdings in GSK plc (NYSE:GSK) by 2.2% in the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 159,646 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock after selling 3,655 shares during the quarter. Meritage Portfolio Management’s holdings in GSK were worth $6,526,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds have also added to or reduced their stakes in GSK. Primecap Management Co. CA increased its stake in shares of GSK by 13.9% in the second quarter. Primecap Management Co. CA now owns 14,511,390 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $558,689,000 after buying an additional 1,773,020 shares during the period. Provident Trust Co. raised its holdings in GSK by 1.7% during the 3rd quarter. Provident Trust Co. now owns 3,953,602 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock worth $161,623,000 after purchasing an additional 66,765 shares during the last quarter. Equity Investment Corp lifted its position in shares of GSK by 1.0% in the 2nd quarter. Equity Investment Corp now owns 3,433,202 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock worth $132,178,000 after purchasing an additional 34,631 shares during the period. Renaissance Technologies LLC boosted its stake in shares of GSK by 30.9% in the 2nd quarter. Renaissance Technologies LLC now owns 2,347,993 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $90,398,000 after purchasing an additional 554,600 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Dimensional Fund Advisors LP increased its position in shares of GSK by 33.8% during the second quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 2,256,320 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock worth $86,875,000 after buying an additional 569,614 shares during the period. 15.74% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

GSK has been the topic of a number of research analyst reports. Barclays raised shares of GSK to a “hold” rating in a research report on Tuesday, August 27th. Argus upgraded GSK to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, August 7th. Finally, Guggenheim cut GSK from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating in a report on Thursday, October 31st. Five investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, one has issued a buy rating and three have given a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $50.00.

Insider Activity at GSK

In other GSK news, major shareholder Plc Gsk bought 2,791,930 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, September 27th. The stock was bought at an average cost of $8.00 per share, with a total value of $22,335,440.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now directly owns 16,775,691 shares in the company, valued at approximately $134,205,528. The trade was a 0.00 % increase in their position. The purchase was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. 10.00% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

GSK Stock Down 1.0 %

Shares of GSK traded down $0.37 during trading hours on Friday, hitting $36.29. The stock had a trading volume of 8,866,773 shares, compared to its average volume of 6,274,321. The firm has a 50 day simple moving average of $39.95 and a 200-day simple moving average of $40.91. GSK plc has a 1-year low of $33.89 and a 1-year high of $45.92. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.98, a current ratio of 0.81 and a quick ratio of 0.53. The firm has a market capitalization of $75.21 billion, a P/E ratio of 23.56, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.38 and a beta of 0.66.

GSK Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, January 9th. Stockholders of record on Friday, November 15th will be issued a dividend of $0.3928 per share. This is an increase from GSK’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.38. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, November 15th. This represents a $1.57 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 4.33%. GSK’s payout ratio is currently 98.70%.

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.