The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company Has $29.07 Million Stake in Zoetis Inc. $ZTS

The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company reduced its holdings in Zoetis Inc. (NYSE:ZTS) by 14.4% in the 1st quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The fund owned 245,963 shares of the company’s stock after selling 41,479 shares during the quarter. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company’s holdings in Zoetis were worth $29,075,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of the company. Prosperity Bancshares Inc bought a new position in shares of Zoetis during the 4th quarter valued at about $25,000. Cassaday & Co Wealth Management LLC bought a new stake in Zoetis during the 1st quarter worth approximately $28,000. Lodestone Wealth Management LLC acquired a new stake in Zoetis during the 4th quarter worth approximately $30,000. Elyxium Wealth LLC acquired a new stake in Zoetis during the 4th quarter worth approximately $32,000. Finally, Root Financial Partners LLC lifted its stake in Zoetis by 66.5% in the first quarter. Root Financial Partners LLC now owns 258 shares of the company’s stock valued at $30,000 after buying an additional 103 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 92.80% of the company’s stock.

Zoetis Trading Up 1.8%

NYSE ZTS opened at $77.37 on Friday. Zoetis Inc. has a 52 week low of $71.47 and a 52 week high of $160.48. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.80, a quick ratio of 1.91 and a current ratio of 3.15. The stock’s 50 day moving average price is $77.05 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $102.49. The stock has a market capitalization of $32.44 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 12.83, a PEG ratio of 1.19 and a beta of 0.75.

Zoetis (NYSE:ZTS) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, May 7th. The company reported $1.53 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.60 by ($0.07). The business had revenue of $2.26 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.30 billion. Zoetis had a return on equity of 66.85% and a net margin of 27.80%.Zoetis’s revenue was up 2.9% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the business earned $1.48 earnings per share. Zoetis has set its FY 2026 guidance at 6.850-7.000 EPS. As a group, analysts anticipate that Zoetis Inc. will post 6.87 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Zoetis Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, September 1st. Investors of record on Monday, July 20th will be issued a dividend of $0.53 per share. The ex-dividend date is Monday, July 20th. This represents a $2.12 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.7%. Zoetis’s dividend payout ratio is presently 35.16%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research firms have recently weighed in on ZTS. Argus reiterated a “hold” rating on shares of Zoetis in a report on Wednesday, May 27th. HSBC dropped their price objective on shares of Zoetis from $140.00 to $95.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Monday, July 6th. Stifel Nicolaus cut their price objective on shares of Zoetis from $95.00 to $85.00 and set a “hold” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, June 26th. UBS Group reduced their target price on shares of Zoetis from $99.00 to $85.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research note on Monday. Finally, TD Cowen lowered their target price on Zoetis from $150.00 to $104.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, June 30th. Eight investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, eight have issued a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Zoetis currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $118.33.

Insider Activity at Zoetis

In other Zoetis news, Director Paul Bisaro purchased 2,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, May 13th. The shares were purchased at an average cost of $75.88 per share, with a total value of $151,760.00. Following the transaction, the director directly owned 27,862 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,114,168.56. This represents a 7.73% increase in their position. The purchase was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, Director Frank A. Damelio acquired 6,650 shares of Zoetis stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, May 13th. The shares were acquired at an average price of $75.39 per share, with a total value of $501,343.50. Following the completion of the purchase, the director owned 21,458 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,617,718.62. The trade was a 44.91% increase in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this purchase is available in the SEC filing. Over the last 90 days, insiders acquired 11,650 shares of company stock valued at $886,384. Corporate insiders own 0.22% of the company’s stock.

Zoetis Profile

Zoetis Inc (NYSE: ZTS) is a global animal health company that develops, manufactures and markets a broad portfolio of products and services for companion animals and livestock. The company’s offerings include pharmaceuticals, vaccines and biologics, parasiticides and anti-infectives, as well as diagnostic instruments, consumables and laboratory testing services. Zoetis serves the veterinary community, livestock producers and other animal-health customers with products designed to prevent, detect and treat disease and to support animal productivity and welfare.

Zoetis traces its roots to the animal health business of Pfizer and became an independent, publicly traded company following a 2013 separation and initial public offering.