Zoetis (NYSE:ZTS) Rating Increased to Strong-Buy at Leerink Partnrs

Leerink Partnrs upgraded shares of Zoetis (NYSE:ZTS) to a strong-buy rating in a research note released on Monday morning,Zacks.com reports.

A number of other research analysts also recently commented on the company. Piper Sandler boosted their target price on Zoetis from $195.00 to $210.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, August 14th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their price objective on Zoetis from $225.00 to $230.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, October 11th. Leerink Partners began coverage on shares of Zoetis in a research report on Monday. They issued an “outperform” rating and a $215.00 target price for the company. BTIG Research lifted their price objective on shares of Zoetis from $220.00 to $225.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, August 12th. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus boosted their price target on Zoetis from $200.00 to $210.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, September 18th. Eleven research analysts have rated the stock with a buy rating and two have assigned a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Buy” and an average target price of $220.80.

Zoetis Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:ZTS traded up $0.06 during trading hours on Monday, hitting $176.87. 83,994 shares of the company’s stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 2,534,198. The company has a market cap of $79.80 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 33.24, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.69 and a beta of 0.89. Zoetis has a 52 week low of $144.80 and a 52 week high of $201.92. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.26, a quick ratio of 2.27 and a current ratio of 3.69. The company’s fifty day simple moving average is $183.83 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $180.97.

Zoetis (NYSE:ZTS) last announced its earnings results on Monday, November 4th. The company reported $1.58 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.46 by $0.12. Zoetis had a return on equity of 51.98% and a net margin of 26.55%. The company had revenue of $2.40 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.29 billion. Zoetis’s revenue for the quarter was up 11.6% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned $1.36 earnings per share. As a group, equities analysts anticipate that Zoetis will post 5.9 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Zoetis Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, December 3rd. Shareholders of record on Thursday, October 31st will be given a $0.432 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, October 31st. This represents a $1.73 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.98%. Zoetis’s payout ratio is 32.52%.

Institutional Trading of Zoetis

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the business. Darwin Wealth Management LLC bought a new stake in shares of Zoetis during the third quarter valued at approximately $31,000. First Personal Financial Services acquired a new stake in shares of Zoetis in the 3rd quarter valued at $33,000. Capital Performance Advisors LLP bought a new stake in shares of Zoetis during the third quarter worth $33,000. Dunhill Financial LLC lifted its stake in shares of Zoetis by 80.6% during the third quarter. Dunhill Financial LLC now owns 168 shares of the company’s stock valued at $33,000 after acquiring an additional 75 shares during the period. Finally, Quarry LP boosted its holdings in Zoetis by 273.2% in the second quarter. Quarry LP now owns 209 shares of the company’s stock valued at $36,000 after acquiring an additional 153 shares during the last quarter. 92.80% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Zoetis Company 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.