London, June 23, 2026, 12:03 BST
GSK was up 0.6% at 1,936.5 pence as of 12:01 BST Tuesday. Shares moved in a range of 1,911 to 1,944.5 pence. The stock was among the few gainers in a sluggish London market.
FTSE 100 drops to lowest since June 12, defensive stocks gain The FTSE 100 was down 0.7% and hit its lowest mark since June 12 earlier as traders pulled back on risk with more rate hikes seen likely. Healthcare and pharma shares picked up more than 1%. The move looked like a defensive play, not something specific to GSK.
AstraZeneca climbed 1.6% to 13,504 pence just before midday. GSK traded behind AstraZeneca, but both stocks beat the blue-chip index.
GSK’s new filing out Monday was technical, not about business. The drugmaker reported buying 1,101,889 ordinary shares from June 15 to June 19, bringing total buys since May 11 to 8,448,125 shares. GSK now has 269.8 million shares in treasury and about 4.05 billion voting shares out.
GSK kicked off its £2 billion buyback in February 2025, looking to take shares off the market and boost earnings per share. The company said the buyback is aimed at returning excess cash and expects the move to lift EPS. A buyback cuts the number of shares outstanding.
Investors are watching last week’s US green light for Utebzi, GSK’s new oral antibiotic for some adults with tough urinary tract infections and few oral treatment options. Utebzi is now the first oral carbapenem on the US market. GSK chief scientific officer Tony Wood said the drug might “help reduce reliance on hospital-based intravenous care.” GSK
GSK’s Amanda Peppercorn, head of the development program for the drug, said the company is focused on getting Utebzi to patients “within the carbapenem footprint with an oral option,” not expanding to broader groups. GSK expects Utebzi to be on the US market by year-end. Reuters
GSK’s planned $10.6 billion buyout of Nuvalent is still its big move. Two late-stage lung cancer drugs come with the deal, with FDA decisions expected in September and November. CEO Luke Miels said the products “could launch this year if approved by the FDA.” GSK
GSK is banking on regulatory signoff and a smooth launch, but the drugs aren’t approved yet. The company is funding what’s set to be its biggest acquisition in over ten years with cash and debt. If regulators stall or sales miss forecasts, defending the price tag will get tougher.
Investors have been quick to punish numbers that look propped up by short-term lifts. GSK shares fell over 8% after the company’s first-quarter update in April, although core earnings per share came in ahead of analyst estimates. “The beat was likely more modest than the numbers suggest,” said James Eugene at Verso Investment Management. Reuters
GSK is set to report second-quarter earnings July 28. The stock could keep moving on defensive flows instead of company headlines ahead of that report.
