Miels, who took over from Emma Walmsley in January, will steer the British drugmaker through a year where it aims to deliver commercially from a research ramp-up and counter looming patent expiries for its top-selling HIV drugs.
“We need to accelerate what we have and to add to it via smart business development,” he said on a call with journalists.
GSK’ shares rose as much as 5.6% to 2,055 pence apiece, their highest in nearly 25 years as Miels, in his first outlook presentation, backed the company’s sales target of generating more than £40 billion (US$55 billion) by 2031.
GSK shares have staged a strong recovery compared to several European rivals after a turbulent 2025 amid tariff threats and drug pricing pressures from the US government.
Gains have been helped by insider Miels’ appointment, strong earnings momentum and growth of its specialty medicines business.
No change to capital allocation strategy
Investors have previously struggled to have faith in GSK’s ambitious long-term sales target, but Miels is hoping to regain trust.
Sheena Berry, healthcare analyst at Quilter Cheviot, said the outlook represents a steady and credible start for Miels.
GSK does not plan any major changes to how it would allocate capital for business development.
Miels said the company would target deals in the £2 billion to £4 billion range, but there could be some exceptions to this rule.
“The company would look for assets that were ‘hiding in plain sight’ and would help bolster GSK’s late-stage pipeline,” he said.
“Typically we like a programme where the science is reasonably established,” he added.
Last month, GSK made a US$2.2 billion swoop for RAPT Therapeutics for an experimental food allergy drug.
Sales to grow more slowly than in 2025
GSK expects revenue to grow 3% to 5% this year, at constant currency rates, after it rose 7% in 2025 and topped expectations.
Barclays analysts said the forecast was slightly below consensus, primarily due to foreign exchange pressure.
The company reported core earnings per share of 25.5 pence for the three months ended Dec 31, after sales rose 8% to £8.62 billion, beating expectations.
New launches are key for GSK to sustain growth. It won five US regulatory approvals last year including for asthma drug Exdensur and blood cancer drug Blenrep, which are expected to bring in blockbuster peak sales.
However, uncertainty over GSK’s vaccine business, especially in the US, is likely to spill over into 2026, after Health Secretary Robert F Kennedy Jr upended several policies.
GSK expects 2026 sales from its vaccines business and general medicines unit to decline by a low-single-digit percentage or remain stable.
Its specialty medicines business, though, is expected to report low-double-digit growth.