Haleon’s buy rating restated after Pfizer cuts down stake
Published: 07:32 01 Oct 2024 EDT
UBS has reiterated its buy rating on Haleon PLC (LSE:HLN, NYSE:HLN) shares after news that former parent company Pfizer Inc (NYSE:PFE, ETR:PFE) further pared down its stake in the FTSE 100-listed Sensodyne and Panadol maker.
Haleon, which comprises the former consumer divisions of Pfizer and GSK PLC (LSE:GSK, NYSE:GSK), agreed on an off-market purchase of approximately £230 million worth of its own shares after Pfizer said it was cutting its stake by around £2.1 billion.
Pfizer will retain a 16.2% stake in Haleon.
UBS highlighted that half of Haleon’s repurchased shares will be cancelled under Haleon’s £500 million share repurchase programme.
The remaining half will be kept in treasury. This is “for the purposes of satisfying Haleon’s obligations under its existing employee share plans in 2025”, UBS analysts noted.
Analysts have a 410p Haleon price target against a 390p publication price.
