How to buy GSK shares

Headquartered in London and employing more than 70,000 staff, GlaxoSmithKline (now simply "GSK plc" – we'll explain why) is a giant of big pharma. Its greatest hits include the first ever malaria vaccine, Amoxicillin, and 2020's COVID-19 vaccine (ft. Sanofi). The company in is current form is the product of numerous mergers and acquisitions over the years, like a supergroup of drugmakers: Philadelphia's John K Smith & Co. made employee Mahlon Kline a partner and the name became Smith, Kline and Company. A few generations, acquisitions and mergers later, in 2000, SmithKline Beecham plc. (as it was then known) merged with Glaxo Wellcome.

But that's ancient history. Today the stock is listed on the London Stock Exchange (LSE), under the conveniently easy-to-remember ticker "GSK", and traded in sterling. Its hefty market cap makes it a FTSE 100 constituent. Here's how you can get a stake.

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Fees calculator for buying GSK shares with popular apps

Both exchange rates and share prices fluctuate in real time, so the costs estimated here should be considered as a guide only. They don't factor in spreads, which can be hard to pin down. Always refer to the platform itself for availability and pricing.

Quantity of shares

Platform	Finder Score	Account fee	Min. initial deposit	Trade cost	Link
	9 Excellent	£0	$100	£1,368.81	Go to siteCapital at risk
	9.1 Excellent	£0	£0	£1,368.81	Go to siteCapital at risk
	9 Excellent	From £0	£0	N/A	Go to siteCapital at risk
	8.8 Great	£0	£0	N/A	Go to siteCapital at risk
	9.2 Excellent	£0	£0	£1,368.81	Go to siteCapital at risk
	8.5 Great	£0 (0.45% for funds)	£1	£1,380.76	Go to siteCapital at risk

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Alternative ways to invest in GSK

• Via a fund
• Via a FTSE 100 ETF

Buying shares in just one company is generally considered a riskier bet than investing in a range of investments - AKA a "diversified portfolio". Experts generally recommend holding a mix of investments in specific assets and funds. Funds are ready-made portfolios of multiple companies' shares (potentially including GSK), and the idea is that drops in the value of one constituent company's share price might be offset by rises in others.

GSK is a major part of the London stock exchange, so it's included in many global funds and investment trusts, as well as tracker-style exchange traded funds (ETFs).

ETF	Icon	1-year performance (to Apr. '25)	5-year performance (to Apr. '25)	Link
Xtrackers FTSE 100 ETF 1C (XDUK)		N/A	N/A	Invest Capital at risk
iShares FTSE 100 ETF GBP Acc (CUKX)		N/A	N/A	Invest Capital at risk
Invesco FTSE 100 ETF (S100)		N/A	N/A	Invest Capital at risk
HSBC FTSE 100 ETF (HUKX)		N/A	N/A	Invest Capital at risk

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Is it a good time to buy GSK stock?

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Invest in GSK shares

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Frequently asked questions

• Does GSK pay dividends?

  • Dividend yield
  • Forward yield
  • Payout ratio

  Dividend yield: 4.79% of stock value

  Forward annual dividend yield: 4.79% of stock value

  Dividend payout ratio: 0.45% of net profits

  GSK has recently paid out dividends equivalent to 4.79% of its share value annually.

  GSK has paid out, on average, around 0.45% of recent net profits as dividends. That has enabled analysts to estimate a "forward annual dividend yield" of 4.79% of the current stock value. This means that over a year, based on recent payouts (which are sadly no guarantee of future payouts), shareholders could enjoy a 4.79% return on their shares, in the form of dividend payments. In GSK's case, that would currently equate to about 61 per share.

  While GSK's payout ratio might seem low, this can signify that the company is investing more in its future growth.

  GSK's dividend yield is perhaps best considered in relation to those of similar companies.

  • Pfizer (PFE.US): 7.77% (7.77% forward annual dividend yield)
  • Gilead Sciences (GILD.US): 3.02% (3.02% forward annual dividend yield)
  • Johnson-and-Johnson (JNJ.US): 3.3% (3.3% forward annual dividend yield)
  • Abbott Laboratories (ABT.US): 1.8% (1.8% forward annual dividend yield)
  • IDEXX Laboratories (IDXX.US): (does not pay dividend)
  • AstraZeneca (AZN.LSE): 2.43% (2.43% forward annual dividend yield)

• When does the fiscal year end for GSK?

  GSK's fiscal year ends in December.

• Where is GSK based?

  GSK's address is: 79 New Oxford Street, London, United Kingdom, WC1A 1DG

• Have GSK's shares ever split?

  GSK's shares were split on a 4:5 basis on 18 July 2022. So if you had owned 5 shares the day before before the split, the next day you'd have owned 4 shares. This wouldn't directly have changed the overall worth of your GSK shares – just the quantity. However, indirectly, the new 25% higher share price could have impacted the market appetite for GSK shares which in turn could have impacted GSK's share price.

• How to sell GSK shares

  It's as easy to sell GSK as it is to buy! Here's how to sell GSK shares that you already own.

  1. Open your investment app. If you've got one with desktop access, you can log in online
  2. Go to your portfolio. This should be in the main menu
  3. Find your shares. You may be able to search your portfolio
  4. Choose how many you'd like to sell. You'll be able to review the price and see how much you'll receive
  5. Sell your GSK shares. Your investment platform will let you know when your shares are sold

• Can you buy GSK shares with a debit card?

  Most dealing providers will let you use your debit card to top up your account and buy shares. The main ways are with a debit card, bank transfer or with Apple/Google Pay.

• What's the easiest way to buy GSK shares?

  The easiest way to get hold of some GSK shares is to sign up for a share trading app and place a market order or basic order. This type of order tells the platform that you're interested, so it'll try to execute it as quickly as it can. It could take some time for the order to go through, especially if there's a lot of volatility in GSK shares.

• Do you need to complete a W8-BEN form if you want to invest in GSK

  If you're investing in a US stock, you'll need to complete a W8-BEN form to minimise your tax liability. Whether these are automatically handled for you depends on your broker, so it would be a good idea to check with them directly.

• What is the key financial information for GSK?

  GSK financials

  Revenue TTM	£31.4 billion
  Operating margin TTM	12.28%
  Gross profit TTM	£22.5 billion
  Return on assets TTM	6.53%
  Return on equity TTM	22.8%
  Profit margin	8.21%
  Book value	3.35p
  Market capitalisation more info button	£54.2 billion
  EBITDA more info button	£8.3 billion

  TTM: trailing 12 months

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