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GSK (GSK) Gains But Lags Market: What You Should Know

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GSK (GSK - Free Report) closed at $30.65 in the latest trading session, marking a +0.92% move from the prior day. This move lagged the S&P 500's daily gain of 2.6%.

Coming into today, shares of the drug developer had lost 2.66% in the past month. In that same time, the Medical sector lost 8.72%, while the S&P 500 lost 12.9%.

Wall Street will be looking for positivity from GSK as it approaches its next earnings report date. In that report, analysts expect GSK to post earnings of $1.02 per share. This would mark a year-over-year decline of 19.05%. Meanwhile, the Zacks Consensus Estimate for revenue is projecting net sales of $8.44 billion, down 32.53% from the year-ago period.

Looking at the full year, our Zacks Consensus Estimates suggest analysts are expecting earnings of $3.20 per share and revenue of $33.6 billion. These totals would mark changes of -17.74% and -28.36%, respectively, from last year.

It is also important to note the recent changes to analyst estimates for GSK. These revisions typically reflect the latest short-term business trends, which can change frequently. With this in mind, we can consider positive estimate revisions a sign of optimism about the company's business outlook.

Research indicates that these estimate revisions are directly correlated with near-term share price momentum. Investors can capitalize on this by using the Zacks Rank. This model considers these estimate changes and provides a simple, actionable rating system.

The Zacks Rank system, which ranges from #1 (Strong Buy) to #5 (Strong Sell), has an impressive outside-audited track record of outperformance, with #1 stocks generating an average annual return of +25% since 1988. The Zacks Consensus EPS estimate has moved 1.29% lower within the past month. GSK is currently a Zacks Rank #3 (Hold).

Investors should also note GSK's current valuation metrics, including its Forward P/E ratio of 9.51. This represents a discount compared to its industry's average Forward P/E of 20.24.

It is also worth noting that GSK currently has a PEG ratio of 1.17. This popular metric is similar to the widely-known P/E ratio, with the difference being that the PEG ratio also takes into account the company's expected earnings growth rate. The Medical - Biomedical and Genetics industry currently had an average PEG ratio of 1.37 as of yesterday's close.

The Medical - Biomedical and Genetics industry is part of the Medical sector. This group has a Zacks Industry Rank of 59, putting it in the top 24% of all 250+ industries.

The Zacks Industry Rank includes is listed in order from best to worst in terms of the average Zacks Rank of the individual companies within each of these sectors. Our research shows that the top 50% rated industries outperform the bottom half by a factor of 2 to 1.

To follow GSK in the coming trading sessions, be sure to utilize Zacks.com.


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