Zhang Financial LLC Sells 1,224 Shares of Zoetis Inc. (NYSE:ZTS)

Zhang Financial LLC lowered its stake in shares of Zoetis Inc. (NYSE:ZTS) by 5.7% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The firm owned 20,206 shares of the company’s stock after selling 1,224 shares during the period. Zhang Financial LLC’s holdings in Zoetis were worth $3,988,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of ZTS. Norges Bank bought a new position in Zoetis during the 4th quarter valued at about $745,861,000. Morgan Stanley lifted its stake in shares of Zoetis by 34.6% in the 4th quarter. Morgan Stanley now owns 10,872,704 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,593,395,000 after purchasing an additional 2,796,694 shares during the period. Moneta Group Investment Advisors LLC lifted its stake in shares of Zoetis by 124,281.9% in the 4th quarter. Moneta Group Investment Advisors LLC now owns 2,332,160 shares of the company’s stock worth $341,778,000 after purchasing an additional 2,330,285 shares during the period. Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership lifted its stake in shares of Zoetis by 171.7% in the 1st quarter. Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership now owns 3,326,448 shares of the company’s stock worth $627,335,000 after purchasing an additional 2,102,306 shares during the period. Finally, Vaughan Nelson Investment Management L.P. bought a new position in shares of Zoetis in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $176,219,000. Institutional investors own 92.80% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

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

Insider Activity

In other news, EVP Roxanne Lagano sold 363 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, February 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $197.74, for a total transaction of $71,779.62. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 20,417 shares in the company, valued at approximately $4,037,257.58. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. In the last ninety days, insiders sold 2,209 shares of company stock worth $371,293. 0.12% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Zoetis Price Performance

ZTS traded down $5.99 during trading on Friday, reaching $147.12. 3,849,485 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 2,999,227. 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 Inc. has a 12-month low of $146.91 and a 12-month high of $201.92. The firm has a fifty day simple moving average of $176.49 and a 200 day simple moving average of $180.20. The company has a market cap of $67.29 billion, a P/E ratio of 29.32, a PEG ratio of 2.32 and a beta of 0.85.

Zoetis (NYSE:ZTS) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, February 13th. The company reported $1.24 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.32 by ($0.08). Zoetis had a net margin of 27.43% and a return on equity of 51.25%. The company had revenue of $2.21 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $2.19 billion. During the same period last year, the business earned $1.15 earnings per share. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 8.5% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities analysts forecast that Zoetis Inc. will post 5.79 EPS for the current year.

Zoetis Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, June 4th. Stockholders of record on Friday, April 19th will be given a dividend of $0.432 per share. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, April 18th. This represents a $1.73 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.17%. Zoetis’s dividend payout ratio is currently 34.12%.

About Zoetis

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.