Diamond Hill Capital Management LLC Investment Advisor Acquires 629,974 Shares of Zoetis Inc. $ZTS

Diamond Hill Capital Management LLC Investment Advisor lifted its stake in shares of Zoetis Inc. (NYSE:ZTS) by 21.5% during the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 3,557,436 shares of the company’s stock after purchasing an additional 629,974 shares during the quarter. Zoetis comprises about 2.0% of Diamond Hill Capital Management LLC Investment Advisor’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 10th largest holding. Diamond Hill Capital Management LLC Investment Advisor’s holdings in Zoetis were worth $255,637,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Several other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of the stock. University of Texas Texas AM Investment Management Co. bought a new position in Zoetis in the 2nd quarter valued at about $25,000. Prosperity Bancshares Inc bought a new stake in shares of Zoetis during the 4th quarter worth about $25,000. Cassaday & Co Wealth Management LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Zoetis in the 1st quarter worth approximately $28,000. Root Financial Partners LLC lifted its stake in shares of Zoetis by 66.5% in the 1st quarter. Root Financial Partners LLC now owns 258 shares of the company’s stock worth $30,000 after acquiring an additional 103 shares during the period. Finally, Elyxium Wealth LLC bought a new position in shares of Zoetis in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $32,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 92.80% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

ZTS has been the topic of a number of research analyst reports. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lowered their price objective on shares of Zoetis from $130.00 to $115.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, August 7th. Stifel Nicolaus cut their target price on Zoetis from $95.00 to $85.00 and set a “hold” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, June 26th. William Blair reiterated a “market perform” rating on shares of Zoetis in a research report on Thursday, August 6th. Citigroup lowered their price target on Zoetis from $112.00 to $96.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, August 11th. Finally, BNP Paribas Exane cut their price objective on Zoetis from $146.00 to $110.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, August 11th. Eight equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, nine have issued a Hold rating and two have assigned a Sell rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $109.62.

Zoetis Price Performance

ZTS stock opened at $73.64 on Monday. The firm has a 50-day moving average of $76.30 and a two-hundred day moving average of $98.84. Zoetis Inc. has a one year low of $71.45 and a one year high of $160.48. The company has a current ratio of 3.08, a quick ratio of 1.84 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.87. The firm has a market capitalization of $30.43 billion, a PE ratio of 12.13, a P/E/G ratio of 1.28 and a beta of 0.73.

Zoetis (NYSE:ZTS) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, August 6th. The company reported $1.87 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.85 by $0.02. Zoetis had a net margin of 27.49% and a return on equity of 74.89%. The firm had revenue of $2.47 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $2.50 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $1.76 EPS. The company’s quarterly revenue was down .2% compared to the same quarter last year. Zoetis has set its FY 2026 guidance at 6.150-6.250 EPS. On average, analysts forecast that Zoetis Inc. will post 6.19 earnings per share for the current year.

Zoetis Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, September 1st. Shareholders of record on Monday, July 20th will be given a dividend of $0.53 per share. The ex-dividend date is Monday, July 20th. This represents a $2.12 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.9%. Zoetis’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 34.93%.

About Zoetis

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.