GSK Beats on Q3 Core EPS, Reaffirms 2026 Guidance as Specialty Drugs Offset Vaccine Slump
GSK sits 19% above its 52-week low of $42.885.
Summary
GSK beat on the bottom line: core EPS of 54.6p versus a 50p consensus, with sales up 5% at constant currencies to £8.9B. Specialty medicines did the heavy lifting, up 15% to £3.9B, led by oncology (+23%) and HIV (+10%). Vaccines are the soft spot — down 2% to £2.6B, with Shingrix off 5% to £780M and Arexvy down 24% to £195M on weaker demand. Reported numbers look worse than core: total operating profit fell 16% and total EPS dropped 21% to 38.5p, driven by £328M in restructuring charges tied to the Accelerate Growth program. Management reaffirmed 2026 guidance — turnover +3-5%, core operating profit +7-9%, core EPS +7-9% — and pointed to the upper half of the turnover and operating profit ranges, though core EPS is guided to the lower half. The reaffirmation lands after a run of regulatory wins, including the October FDA approvals of Jemperli in rectal cancer and Hibsago in hepatitis B.
At the time of this announcement, GSK was trading at $51.20 on NYSE in the Life Sciences sector, with a market capitalization of approximately $102.5B. The 52-week trading range was $42.89 to $61.70. This news item was assessed with positive market sentiment and an importance score of 7 out of 10. Source: Seeking Alpha.