Desjardins Global Asset Management Inc. Trims Position in Zoetis Inc. (NYSE:ZTS)

Desjardins Global Asset Management Inc. cut its position in shares of Zoetis Inc. (NYSE:ZTS) by 9.6% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 82,703 shares of the company’s stock after selling 8,774 shares during the period. Zoetis makes up about 1.7% of Desjardins Global Asset Management Inc.’s portfolio, making the stock its 9th biggest holding. Desjardins Global Asset Management Inc.’s holdings in Zoetis were worth $16,323,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in ZTS. Blue Bell Private Wealth Management LLC grew its holdings in Zoetis by 222.5% during the 4th quarter. Blue Bell Private Wealth Management LLC now owns 129 shares of the company’s stock valued at $25,000 after purchasing an additional 89 shares during the last quarter. Nelson Van Denburg & Campbell Wealth Management Group LLC boosted its position in shares of Zoetis by 430.8% during the first quarter. Nelson Van Denburg & Campbell Wealth Management Group LLC now owns 138 shares of the company’s stock valued at $26,000 after buying an additional 112 shares during the period. VitalStone Financial LLC bought a new position in shares of Zoetis during the first quarter valued at approximately $37,000. Evermay Wealth Management LLC raised its holdings in shares of Zoetis by 439.3% in the first quarter. Evermay Wealth Management LLC now owns 151 shares of the company’s stock worth $25,000 after buying an additional 123 shares during the period. Finally, Worth Asset Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Zoetis in the first quarter worth approximately $26,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 92.80% of the company’s stock.

Insider Buying and Selling at Zoetis

In other news, EVP Roxanne Lagano sold 923 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, January 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $191.43, for a total transaction of $176,689.89. Following the sale, the executive vice president now owns 17,569 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $3,363,233.67. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Over the last ninety days, insiders sold 2,209 shares of company stock valued at $408,453. 0.12% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research analysts have issued reports on the stock. Barclays increased their target price on shares of Zoetis from $255.00 to $260.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Wednesday, February 14th. Stifel Nicolaus reduced their price objective on shares of Zoetis from $215.00 to $195.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, April 2nd. The Goldman Sachs Group increased their target price on Zoetis from $190.00 to $226.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, January 17th. Piper Sandler reissued an “overweight” rating and issued a $195.00 price target (down from $220.00) on shares of Zoetis in a research report on Tuesday. Finally, StockNews.com downgraded Zoetis from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, February 20th. Eight equities research analysts have rated the stock with a buy rating, According to data from MarketBeat, Zoetis currently has a consensus rating of “Buy” and a consensus price target of $221.75.

Zoetis Stock Performance

Shares of Zoetis stock traded up $4.30 during trading on Tuesday, hitting $154.07. 3,240,979 shares of the company’s stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 2,933,993. The stock has a market capitalization of $70.47 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 30.21, a PEG ratio of 2.29 and a beta of 0.85. The business has a 50-day simple moving average of $179.11 and a 200-day simple moving average of $180.74. Zoetis Inc. has a 52-week low of $148.48 and a 52-week high of $201.92. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.32, a quick ratio of 2.00 and a current ratio of 3.36.

Zoetis (NYSE:ZTS) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, February 13th. The company reported $1.24 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.32 by ($0.08). The company had revenue of $2.21 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.19 billion. Zoetis had a return on equity of 51.25% and a net margin of 27.43%. Zoetis’s revenue for the quarter was up 8.5% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $1.15 earnings per share. On average, research analysts forecast that Zoetis Inc. will post 5.8 EPS for the current year.

Zoetis Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, June 4th. Shareholders of record on Friday, April 19th will be issued a $0.432 dividend. This represents a $1.73 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.12%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, April 18th. Zoetis’s payout ratio is presently 33.93%.

Zoetis Profile

Zoetis Inc engages in the discovery, development, manufacture, and commercialization of animal health medicines, vaccines, and diagnostic products and services in the United States and internationally. The company commercializes products primarily across species, including livestock, such as cattle, swine, poultry, fish, and sheep and others; and companion animals comprising dogs, cats, and horses.