Patten & Patten Inc. TN Trims Stock Position in Zoetis Inc. (NYSE:ZTS)

Patten & Patten Inc. TN trimmed its holdings in Zoetis Inc. (NYSE:ZTS) by 2.6% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 15,418 shares of the company’s stock after selling 410 shares during the period. Patten & Patten Inc. TN’s holdings in Zoetis were worth $2,512,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Sovereign Investment Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in Zoetis in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $246,000. Avalon Trust Co boosted its holdings in shares of Zoetis by 217.7% in the 4th quarter. Avalon Trust Co now owns 2,627 shares of the company’s stock valued at $428,000 after purchasing an additional 1,800 shares during the last quarter. one8zero8 LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Zoetis during the 4th quarter valued at $368,000. Choate Investment Advisors increased its holdings in shares of Zoetis by 37.6% during the 4th quarter. Choate Investment Advisors now owns 5,109 shares of the company’s stock worth $832,000 after buying an additional 1,395 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Frank Rimerman Advisors LLC increased its holdings in shares of Zoetis by 5.4% during the 4th quarter. Frank Rimerman Advisors LLC now owns 5,397 shares of the company’s stock worth $879,000 after buying an additional 275 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 92.80% of the company’s stock.

Zoetis Price Performance

Shares of ZTS stock opened at $161.33 on Friday. Zoetis Inc. has a twelve month low of $144.80 and a twelve month high of $200.33. The company has a market capitalization of $72.24 billion, a PE ratio of 29.49, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.78 and a beta of 0.94. The company has a current ratio of 1.75, a quick ratio of 1.08 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.09. The firm has a fifty day simple moving average of $166.82 and a 200-day simple moving average of $176.15.

Zoetis (NYSE:ZTS) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, February 13th. The company reported $1.40 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.37 by $0.03. Zoetis had a net margin of 26.86% and a return on equity of 53.82%. The company had revenue of $2.32 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $2.30 billion. Equities research analysts anticipate that Zoetis Inc. will post 6.07 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Zoetis Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, June 3rd. Shareholders of record on Monday, April 21st will be given a $0.50 dividend. This represents a $2.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.24%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, April 21st. Zoetis’s payout ratio is 36.56%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Zoetis

In other news, EVP Roxanne Lagano sold 326 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, March 10th. The shares were sold at an average price of $170.00, for a total value of $55,420.00. Following the sale, the executive vice president now owns 15,781 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,682,770. This represents a 2.02 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, Director Willie M. Reed sold 1,210 shares of Zoetis stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, March 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $166.14, for a total value of $201,029.40. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now owns 11,245 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,868,244.30. This trade represents a 9.71 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 1,862 shares of company stock valued at $312,254 in the last three months. Corporate insiders own 0.16% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

ZTS has been the subject of a number of research reports. UBS Group began coverage on Zoetis in a research report on Monday, December 9th. They set a “neutral” rating and a $196.00 price target for the company. Morgan Stanley reduced their price objective on Zoetis from $243.00 to $238.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, February 14th. Stifel Nicolaus dropped their target price on shares of Zoetis from $210.00 to $180.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, January 7th. Leerink Partnrs raised shares of Zoetis to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Monday, December 2nd. Finally, Barclays increased their price objective on shares of Zoetis from $242.00 to $244.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday, February 14th. One analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating, ten have assigned a buy rating and two have issued a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Zoetis presently has an average rating of “Buy” and a consensus price target of $215.90.

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.