London, March 25, 2026, 12:08 GMT
GSK shares rose 3.2% to 2,039.5 pence in London by 1208 GMT on Wednesday, as investors digested Japan’s orphan-drug designation for its experimental lung-cancer therapy risvutatug rezetecan and a filing showed the company was still buying back stock. 1
The move matters because GSK has already told investors to expect slower sales growth this year, putting more weight on launches and pipeline wins as it heads toward looming patent expiries on its top HIV drugs. In February, the drugmaker forecast 2026 revenue growth of 3% to 5%, excluding currency swings, and kept a goal of more than £40 billion in annual sales by 2031; new CEO Luke Miels said GSK needed to “accelerate what we have”, while Quilter Cheviot analyst Sheena Berry called his opening stance a “steady and credible start”. 2
GSK said on Monday that Japan’s health ministry had granted orphan-drug status to risvutatug rezetecan for small-cell lung cancer, an aggressive disease with limited treatment options. In Japan, that designation is used for high-need drugs aimed at diseases affecting fewer than 50,000 patients. 3
The company said the designation was backed by early ARTEMIS-001 data showing durable responses in extensive-stage disease, where most patients relapse after initial treatment and median survival on standard care is about eight months. Risvutatug rezetecan is an antibody-drug conjugate, or ADC — a targeted therapy that uses an antibody to deliver a cell-killing drug — and GSK said a global phase III trial started in August 2025. It is the sixth regulatory designation for the drug.
There was other pipeline support, too. The U.S. Food and Drug Administration approved Lynavoy on March 19 for cholestatic pruritus in primary biliary cholangitis, the first U.S. medicine cleared for that itch condition, with GSK executive Kaivan Khavandi calling it a “much needed treatment option”. 4
Meanwhile, a March 24 SEC filing showed GSK bought back 500,000 shares that day under its ongoing repurchase programme. Wednesday’s rise came after a 2.1% gain on Tuesday and pushed the stock back above 2,000 pence, though it remained below its 52-week high of 2,282 pence. 5
But the rally is not a one-way trade. Deutsche Bank analyst Emmanuel Papadakis reiterated a hold rating on Tuesday with a 1,900-pence target and said recent checks on launches including Exdensur, Blenrep and Arexvy had sent mixed signals; Barclays analyst James Gordon kept a sell rating and the same 1,900-pence target last week, leaving both price objectives below Wednesday’s market level. 6
The wider market helped. The FTSE 100 was up about 1.1% by 1028 GMT as investors took comfort from reports of U.S. efforts to secure a ceasefire in the Middle East, lifting London stocks broadly and giving GSK a macro tailwind on top of its company news. 7
