Stifel Financial Corp Boosts Holdings in GSK plc (NYSE:GSK)

Stifel Financial Corp grew its position in GSK plc (NYSE:GSK - Free Report) by 9.7% in the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 604,973 shares of the pharmaceutical company's stock after buying an additional 53,440 shares during the period. Stifel Financial Corp's holdings in GSK were worth $24,731,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the company. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC grew its stake in shares of GSK by 9.4% in the 2nd quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 3,542 shares of the pharmaceutical company's stock valued at $137,000 after buying an additional 303 shares during the period. Mesirow Financial Investment Management Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of GSK by 2.0% in the 3rd quarter. Mesirow Financial Investment Management Inc. now owns 16,693 shares of the pharmaceutical company's stock worth $682,000 after acquiring an additional 323 shares during the last quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC lifted its holdings in shares of GSK by 6.3% in the 2nd quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC now owns 5,535 shares of the pharmaceutical company's stock worth $213,000 after acquiring an additional 327 shares during the last quarter. Investment Partners Asset Management Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of GSK by 2.3% in the 3rd quarter. Investment Partners Asset Management Inc. now owns 15,559 shares of the pharmaceutical company's stock worth $636,000 after acquiring an additional 344 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Chapin Davis Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of GSK by 2.5% in the 2nd quarter. Chapin Davis Inc. now owns 14,591 shares of the pharmaceutical company's stock worth $562,000 after acquiring an additional 360 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 15.74% of the company's stock.

GSK Stock Up 4.1 %

Shares of GSK traded up $1.42 during midday trading on Monday, reaching $35.99. The stock had a trading volume of 7,252,331 shares, compared to its average volume of 4,161,222. GSK plc has a 1-year low of $32.83 and a 1-year high of $45.92. The company's fifty day simple moving average is $36.66 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $39.57. The company has a market cap of $74.59 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 22.45, a PEG ratio of 1.33 and a beta of 0.64. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.98, a current ratio of 0.81 and a quick ratio of 0.53.

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 $0.3928 dividend. This represents a $1.57 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 4.37%. This is a positive change from GSK's previous quarterly dividend of $0.38. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, November 15th. GSK's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 99.35%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

GSK has been the topic of several recent analyst reports. Barclays upgraded shares of GSK to a "hold" rating in a report on Tuesday, August 27th. Jefferies Financial Group lowered shares of GSK from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating and reduced their target price for the stock from $53.00 to $39.50 in a report on Tuesday, November 12th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft lowered shares of GSK from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Friday, November 15th. Guggenheim lowered shares of GSK from a "buy" rating to a "neutral" rating in a report on Thursday, October 31st. Finally, StockNews.com lowered shares of GSK from a "strong-buy" rating to a "buy" rating in a report on Wednesday, December 4th. Seven equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, one has assigned a buy rating and three have given a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $43.25.

Insider Activity

In related news, major shareholder Plc Gsk bought 2,791,930 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, September 27th. The shares were purchased at an average cost of $8.00 per share, with a total value of $22,335,440.00. Following the transaction, the insider now directly owns 16,775,691 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $134,205,528. This represents a 19.97 % increase in their position. The purchase was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Company insiders own 10.00% of the company's stock.

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.