Synovus Financial Corp Sells 46,216 Shares of GSK plc (NYSE:GSK)

Synovus Financial Corp decreased its holdings in shares of GSK plc (NYSE:GSK - Free Report) by 20.7% during the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 176,801 shares of the pharmaceutical company's stock after selling 46,216 shares during the quarter. Synovus Financial Corp's holdings in GSK were worth $7,228,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of the business. Eastern Bank bought a new stake in GSK during the third quarter worth approximately $26,000. Sunbelt Securities Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of GSK by 73.8% during the 3rd quarter. Sunbelt Securities Inc. now owns 711 shares of the pharmaceutical company's stock worth $29,000 after buying an additional 302 shares during the period. Concord Wealth Partners grew its stake in GSK by 231.8% in the 3rd quarter. Concord Wealth Partners now owns 783 shares of the pharmaceutical company's stock valued at $32,000 after buying an additional 547 shares during the last quarter. Ashton Thomas Private Wealth LLC acquired a new position in GSK in the 2nd quarter valued at $37,000. Finally, Fortitude Family Office LLC bought a new position in GSK in the 3rd quarter worth $42,000. Institutional investors own 15.74% of the company's stock.

Insider Activity at GSK

In other GSK news, major shareholder Plc Gsk bought 2,791,930 shares of the stock in a transaction on Friday, September 27th. The stock was purchased at an average price of $8.00 per share, with a total value of $22,335,440.00. Following the acquisition, the insider now owns 16,775,691 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $134,205,528. The trade was a 19.97 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The purchase was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. 10.00% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research analysts have recently commented on the company. StockNews.com upgraded GSK from a "buy" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a report on Thursday. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft downgraded shares of GSK from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Friday, November 15th. Guggenheim downgraded shares of GSK from a "buy" rating to a "neutral" rating in a report on Thursday, October 31st. Barclays raised GSK to a "hold" rating in a research report on Tuesday, August 27th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group cut GSK from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating and cut their price target for the company from $53.00 to $39.50 in a report on Tuesday, November 12th. Seven research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and four have assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $43.25.

GSK Price Performance

Shares of GSK stock traded down $0.22 during trading hours on Friday, hitting $33.95. 3,391,380 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 4,159,023. The stock's 50-day moving average is $36.18 and its 200-day moving average is $39.28. 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 plc has a 52 week low of $32.83 and a 52 week high of $45.92. The stock has a market cap of $70.36 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 22.04, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.54 and a beta of 0.64.

GSK Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, January 9th. Stockholders of record on Friday, November 15th will be paid a dividend of $0.3928 per share. This represents a $1.57 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 4.63%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, November 15th. This is a positive change from GSK's previous quarterly dividend of $0.38. GSK's dividend payout ratio is 99.35%.

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.