FAQs

Our registrars for ordinary shareholders are Equiniti Limited, and our depositary bank for ADR holders is JPMorgan Chase Bank (JPM). They look after our register and are responsible for ensuring that shareholder details are recorded accurately. You should contact our registrars or depositary for anything related to your shareholding, for example:

• To inform of a change of name, address, or bank details
• To request a reissue of a dividend cheque
• To change how your dividends are paid
• To inform of a lost share certificate in case of shareholder death

Both Equiniti and JPM can be contacted by phone or post, and their contact details can be found on the Investors contact details page. Most of these changes can also be made online, by registering for a Shareview Portfolio account if you are an ordinary shareholder or for an EQ shareowner account if you hold ADRs.

The current share price can also be found on the home page of our website. You can also access this information on the Investors section of the GSK website under GSK Share price, and Share price calculators, which include more detailed analysis and historical share prices.

You can create an Equiniti Shareview Portfolio in order to manage your shareholding online. This will enable you to check the balance of your holding, update your records if you change your address or bank account details, and set up paper-free share communications. More details can be found on the Shareview website under the heading ‘Portfolio’.

Shares cannot be bought directly through GSK but can be purchased through your bank or stockbroker. Equiniti, our registrar, also offer a share dealing service which allows you to trade online or over the phone – it is a relatively fast and secure way to deal. Further information can be found on Equiniti’s Shareview website (www.shareview.co.uk)

You will need to complete a Stock Transfer Form and return it to Equiniti with your valid share certificate(s). You can get a copy of a Stock Transfer Form from Equiniti’s Shareview website under ‘Help – Shares’ or by contacting the Customer Experience Centre.

You will need to contact Equiniti, who will place a temporary restriction on the register. You will then need to formally register the shareholder’s death by providing a certified copy of the Grant of Probate or using Equiniti’s Small Estates Service to sell or transfer shares. More information regarding this process can be found on Equiniti’s website under ‘Help – Services – Manage an Estate’.

You will need to complete a Form A that can be sent to you by Equiniti – for security reasons, these forms cannot be downloaded. You can request a form by phone, in writing or online, and Equiniti will arrange for the form to be sent to you. More information is located on Equiniti’s Shareview website under ‘Help – Shares’.

This depends on the nature of the transfer. A guidance note concerning the application of stamp duty on the share transfer is set out on the reverse of the Form A. Please contact your accountant, financial adviser or lawyer if you have further questions in this regard.

This can be done online with an Equiniti Shareview Portfolio, over the phone, or by posting a completed Change of Mandate form (found on the Shareview website under ‘Help – Dividends’). You will need to quote your Shareholder Reference Number, an 11-digit number which can be found on your share certificate or on any previous correspondence we have sent you.

You can register with an Equiniti Shareview Portfolio to make these changes online, which can be done via the Shareview website. If you don’t have a Shareview Portfolio, you will need to contact Equiniti by phone or post using the details found above.

To update your name, an instruction should be sent in writing to Equiniti at the address above. All applications to change a registered name need to be accompanied by supporting documentation. The type of documents required depends on the circumstance or reason for change. Further information can be found on the Shareview website under ‘Help – Account Changes’.

You will need to contact Equiniti, who will place a restriction on the lost certificate to prevent fraudulent use. A new certificate can be issued, which is done by completing and returning a Letter of Indemnity. There is a cost to Equiniti in issuing a replacement certificate, and so there may be a fee charged for this process. You will need to wait for a replacement certificate in order to transfer or sell your shares.

It is not possible to issue a copy of a share certificate. If you have lost your share certificate, please contact Equiniti who will follow the process for a lost certificate (shown above). Other shareholder documents can be obtained by contacting Equiniti.

Shareholding balance can be found by contacting Equiniti via the details on the Investors contact details page. Alternatively, registering with an Equiniti Shareview Portfolio enables you to access the balance of your holdings online by logging onto your account – details on setting up a portfolio can be found above.

This is likely to have occurred because Equiniti is holding two (or more) accounts for you on the share register. If you would like to merge shareholdings registered in your name into a single holding, please provide Equiniti with a written request, signed by all the registered holders or legally appointed representatives.

You may have a preference as to which holding you would like the shares to be merged. If so, please inform Equiniti by confirming the Shareholder Reference Number (SRN). This is an 11-digit number which can be found on your share certificate or on any previous correspondence we have sent you. There is no need to send Equiniti your share certificates, as these will remain valid.

If your certificated holding in GSK is represented by several share certificates you may wish to have these replaced by one consolidated share certificate. You should send your certificates (preferably by courier or recorded delivery to minimise them getting lost in the post) with a letter of instruction to Equiniti.

GSK’s depositary bank, JPMorgan Chase Bank N.A. (“JPMorgan”), operates a Global Invest Direct programme which allows first time and existing investors to purchase and/or sell ADRs. For further details and to obtain an enrolment pack, please visit www.shareowneronline.com.

Alternatively, please contact your bank or stock broker who should be able to advise you on how to buy GSK ADRs.

An American Depository Receipt (ADR) is issued by a depository bank (JPMorgan in GSK’s case), and is used to represent a specific number of shares of a non-US company traded on a US stock exchange. This allows non-US companies to make their shares available outside their home markets and allows investors in the US and elsewhere to easily invest in companies.

American Depository Shares (ADS) are the actual shares which are traded and, in the case of GSK, listed on the New York Stock Exchange. The terms ADR and ADS are often used interchangeably.

One GSK ADR represents two Ordinary Shares held by JPMorgan.

GSK ADRs are issued by the depositary bank, JPMorgan. The underlying ordinary shares are deposited by a local custodian bank, usually by a broker who has purchased the ordinary shares in the open market. Once issued, GSK ADRs may be traded in the US on the New York Stock Exchange.

When the ADR holder sells, the ADR can either be sold to another investor in the US market or cancelled. In the latter case, the ADR is surrendered to the depositary, and the ordinary shares held with the depositary’s custodian would be released back into the home market (i.e. the UK). A GSK ADR holder is able to request delivery of the underlying GSK Ordinary Shares at any time.

The depositary we use is JPMorgan Chase Bank N.A., whose contact details can be found above.

Holders of GSK ADRs are entitled to instruct JPMorgan as to how to vote in relation to their shareholding at the respective Annual General Meetings or General Meetings. The voting rights are in relation to the number of GSK Ordinary Shares represented by the respective ADRs. If you choose not to instruct JPM, your shares will not be voted.

Paper copies of shareholder documents, such as Annual Reports, can be obtained by contacting JPMorgan, directly. Their contact details can be found above. GSK also makes soft copies of most documents, which can be found under ‘Investors – Corporate Reporting’ on our website. 

ADR dividends are paid in US dollars. The dividend amount paid on ADRs is calculated by converting the dividend amount in pounds sterling to US dollars, using the exchange rate as at close of business two days prior to the payment date. Please note that the US dividend is also subject to a dividend fee of $0.0075 per ADR. 

(The US dollar dividend amount received is likely to differ from the US dollar determining rate announced in the quarterly results due to the currency fluctuations between the date the dividend is declared and two days before the payment date).

The ADR depositary is entitled to receive dividends in pounds sterling, which is the currency in which GSK's dividends are declared. Payment in the US dollar determining rate would expose GSK to foreign currency fluctuations arising from movements between ADRs and share registers.

JPMorgan provides a Global Invest Direct programme, a direct ADS dividend reinvestment plan for ADR holders. For details on how to enrol please visit www.shareowneronline.com  or call the above helpline number to obtain an enrolment pack.

The company pays dividends quarterly to shareholders who are named on the register on the “record date”. The dividend rate is announced with the quarterly financial results announcements and is determined in pounds sterling.

Historical dividend information can be found on the GSK website under Dividend calculators

The ex-dividend date marks the first day when buyers of shares are not entitled to the previously announced dividend. Before this date, shares are said to be ‘cum-dividend’: if you buy shares during this period, you are entitled to the dividend which has just been announced. However, if you purchase shares on or after the ex-dividend date you are not entitled to the pending dividend – the previous owner of the shares is.

The record date is exactly one business day after the ex-dividend date. On this date, the registrar will view the share register and determine who will receive dividends by confirming who is recorded on the register on this date. If you buy shares on the ex-dividend date, you will not appear on the register until after the record date, so will not receive the most recent dividend payment.

A dividend calculator can be found on the GSK website Dividend calculators.

To calculate, enter the number of Ordinary shares or ADRs owned when dividend was paid. This page also provides quarterly dividend rates since 2001.

The GSK Dividend Reinvestment Plan (DRIP) is a service offered by Equiniti in which you can use your cash dividends to buy more shares in GSK. As an alternative to the dividend payment, your cash will be used to buy additional shares. The DRIP is a convenient, easy and cost-effective way to build your shareholding.

Please note that a commission charge of 1 per cent of the value of the shares purchased will be charged by Equiniti, and purchases will also be liable to stamp duty at a rate of 0.5 per cent of the value of the shares purchased.

To apply for the GSK DRIP, call 0371 384 2268 or visit ‘Help – Dividend’ on the Shareview website.

Equiniti have an Overseas Payment service in place, through which they can send dividends directly to overseas bank accounts. More information can be found on the Shareview website under ‘Shareholder Services’.  

If you find a dividend cheque which is now out-of-date, you can contact Equiniti to arrange for your uncashed dividends to be paid directly into a nominated bank or building society account.

Receiving dividends by direct credit rather than cheque is a more efficient, secure and environmentally-friendly method of payment. Equiniti, our registrar, currently reissues around 14,000 payments each year to our shareholders who fail to cash their cheques before they expire, often incurring cheque reissue fees at the expense of the shareholder.

January 2020 was the last dividend payment for which you were able to receive a cheque. From April 2020 any monies payable in connection with your shares will only be paid by direct credit.

If you do not provide this information, you will still receive an annual dividend statement; however, you will not receive the money until your bank details are received, after which payment will be credited to your account as soon as possible. Your dividends will not accrue interest while they are being held for you and there may be a fee for Equiniti to reissue payments.

Direct credit is a commonly used means of payment whereby funds are transferred directly into the recipient’s bank account, rather than by providing a cheque that must subsequently be cashed. Direct credit is a more secure method of payment than cheques. It is used by most large organisations to pay, for example, employees’ salaries.

There is no fee charged by GSK or Equiniti for this service.

You can nominate any UK bank or building society account in your name.

By registering for a Shareview Portfolio at www.shareview.co.uk you can manage many aspects of your shareholding online, including updating your bank details. If you are a sole shareholder you can also update your bank details by calling Equiniti, our registrar.

Dividends will be paid into your nominated bank or building society account as cleared funds on the dividend payment date.

If you register for electronic communications at www.shareview.co.uk, you will be sent an electronic notification on the day the dividend is paid. If you are not registered, you will receive an annual consolidated dividend statement by post setting out details of all dividends paid to you in the previous twelve months. These statements are currently sent out in January each year.

If you do not want to register for electronic communications or receive an annual consolidated dividend statement by post in January each year, then please contact Equiniti to request individual dividend statements. These statements will be posted out by second class two days before each dividend payment date so that you receive it on the day the dividend is paid into your bank/building society account.

To set up direct dividend payments, log in to your Shareview Portolio and enter your bank details. Please visit the Shareview website for details on how to register.

You can also complete a Change of Mandate form, which is available on the Shareview website, and return this to Equiniti via post.

Alternatively, you can contact Equiniti directly. Their contact details can be found on the Investors contact details page.

Instead of receiving dividend payments into your bank or building society account, you may wish to build up your shareholding in GSK by using your dividends to purchase further GSK shares. The GSK Dividend Reinvestment Programme (‘DRIP’) is a convenient, easy and cost-effective way to do this. Visit www.shareview.co.uk/info/drip for more information and a DRIP application form.

Please note: If you are not eligible to join the DRIP, or you revoke your DRIP instruction, you will need to provide your bank or building society account details in order for future dividends to be paid to you.

If you do not have a UK bank or building society account, you may be able to arrange for payments to be converted and paid in your local currency using the Equiniti Overseas Payment Service. This service pays in over 83 currencies to over 90 different countries. To view the Terms and Conditions for the service and to download the applicable form please visit www.shareview.co.uk/info/ops or contact Equiniti.

The decision to pay dividends by direct credit, rather than cheque, has been taken to increase the security of payments, decrease costs and reduce our impact on the environment. Under the company’s articles of association, which were approved by shareholders at the 2018 Annual General Meeting, the directors have authority to determine the method by which the company’s dividends are paid, including by direct credit.

Annual General Meeting Archive