Zoetis Inc. (NYSE:ZTS) Shares Sold by Northwest & Ethical Investments L.P.

Northwest & Ethical Investments L.P. lessened its stake in Zoetis Inc. (NYSE:ZTS) by 21.6% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 29,990 shares of the company’s stock after selling 8,250 shares during the quarter. Northwest & Ethical Investments L.P.’s holdings in Zoetis were worth $4,886,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also modified their holdings of the company. Atlantic Edge Private Wealth Management LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Zoetis by 482.8% in the 4th quarter. Atlantic Edge Private Wealth Management LLC now owns 169 shares of the company’s stock valued at $28,000 after buying an additional 140 shares during the period. Rakuten Securities Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Zoetis by 5,533.3% in the 4th quarter. Rakuten Securities Inc. now owns 169 shares of the company’s stock valued at $28,000 after buying an additional 166 shares during the period. Darwin Wealth Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of Zoetis in the 3rd quarter valued at about $31,000. Dunhill Financial LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Zoetis by 80.6% in the 3rd quarter. Dunhill Financial LLC now owns 168 shares of the company’s stock valued at $33,000 after buying an additional 75 shares during the period. Finally, Asset Planning Inc acquired a new position in shares of Zoetis in the 4th quarter valued at about $58,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 92.80% of the company’s stock.

Insider Activity

In other news, Director Willie M. Reed sold 1,210 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on 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 sale, the director now directly owns 11,245 shares in the company, valued at $1,868,244.30. This represents a 9.71 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Also, EVP Roxanne Lagano sold 326 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, March 10th. The shares were sold at an average price of $170.00, for a total value of $55,420.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 15,781 shares in the company, valued at $2,682,770. This represents a 2.02 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 1,862 shares of company stock worth $312,254 over the last ninety days. Corporate insiders own 0.16% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

ZTS has been the subject of several recent analyst reports. Barclays lifted their price target on Zoetis from $242.00 to $244.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday, February 14th. Leerink Partners initiated coverage on Zoetis in a research note on Monday, December 2nd. They issued an “outperform” rating and a $215.00 price target for the company. Morgan Stanley cut their price target on Zoetis from $243.00 to $238.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, February 14th. Leerink Partnrs upgraded Zoetis to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Monday, December 2nd. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus cut their price target on Zoetis from $210.00 to $180.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, January 7th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating, ten have issued a buy rating and two have given a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Buy” and a consensus price target of $215.90.

Zoetis Price Performance

NYSE:ZTS opened at $163.15 on Friday. 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 stock has a 50 day moving average of $166.77 and a two-hundred day moving average of $175.67. The firm has a market cap of $73.06 billion, a P/E ratio of 29.83, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.78 and a beta of 0.94. Zoetis Inc. has a 12 month low of $144.80 and a 12 month high of $200.33.

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

Zoetis Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, June 3rd. Stockholders of record on Monday, April 21st will be given a $0.50 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, April 21st. This represents a $2.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.23%. Zoetis’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 36.56%.

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.