GSK pops into buy zone as Emma Walmsley plans exit; Luke Miels to take the helm

GSK shares jumped back into buy territory Monday after the drugmaker said longtime CEO Emma Walmsley will step down at year-end. Chief commercial officer Luke Miels — who joined in 2017 after senior roles at AstraZeneca, Roche and Sanofi — will take over on January 1.

Walmsley, who has led GSK for nine years, called 2026 “pivotal” for setting the company’s course and said this is the right moment to hand over. During her tenure, GSK spun off its consumer-health arm into Haleon, doubled down on specialty meds and vaccines, and “reinvigorated” R&D, with 15 major pipeline opportunities slated to launch between 2025 and 2031. The balance sheet, the company says, is stronger too.

The market seemed on board. GSK rose 2.7% to 40.92, clearing a 40.57 buy point from a cup-with-handle base. Shares initially broke out on Sept. 5, wobbled near the lower edge of the chase zone, and even slipped back below that mark on Friday. They’re still up more than 16% year to date and just shy of the 2025 intraday high of 45.93 set in May.

Why the switch now? GSK is navigating a tricky backdrop — US trade tariff uncertainty, drug-pricing pressures, looming patent cliffs — and it wants to keep momentum going as it targets more than £40 billion in annual sales by 2031. Analysts generally liked the call: several houses said Miels, seen as Walmsley’s natural successor, could improve sentiment and keep the focus on specialty growth. The big test will be delivering the pipeline and managing the 2028 patent expiry for HIV drug dolutegravir.

GSK recently flagged plans to invest $30 billion in US R&D and supply chain over five years, including $1.2 billion for a new Pennsylvania factory. Walmsley will support the transition through the end of her contract as the board steers through geopolitics and new technologies. Miels calls GSK’s prospects “outstanding” and says he’ll approach the next phase with “humility and ambition.”

With input from Investor’s Business Daily and Reuters.