LGT Group Foundation Sells 5,730 Shares of Zoetis Inc. (NYSE:ZTS)

LGT Group Foundation reduced its stake in Zoetis Inc. (NYSE:ZTS) by 6.3% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 85,650 shares of the company’s stock after selling 5,730 shares during the period. LGT Group Foundation’s holdings in Zoetis were worth $16,887,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of ZTS. Blue Bell Private Wealth Management LLC grew its stake in Zoetis by 222.5% in the fourth quarter. Blue Bell Private Wealth Management LLC now owns 129 shares of the company’s stock worth $25,000 after purchasing an additional 89 shares in the last quarter. Independence Bank of Kentucky lifted its holdings in shares of Zoetis by 371.4% in the 4th quarter. Independence Bank of Kentucky now owns 165 shares of the company’s stock worth $33,000 after buying an additional 130 shares during the period. Ramirez Asset Management Inc. bought a new position in shares of Zoetis during the 3rd quarter worth $35,000. First Financial Corp IN grew its position in shares of Zoetis by 57.2% during the 4th quarter. First Financial Corp IN now owns 217 shares of the company’s stock worth $43,000 after buying an additional 79 shares in the last quarter. Finally, FinTrust Capital Advisors LLC increased its stake in shares of Zoetis by 42.1% during the third quarter. FinTrust Capital Advisors LLC now owns 260 shares of the company’s stock valued at $45,000 after buying an additional 77 shares during the period. 92.80% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Activity at Zoetis

In other Zoetis news, EVP Roxanne Lagano sold 923 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, March 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $173.33, for a total transaction of $159,983.59. Following the sale, the executive vice president now owns 15,723 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,725,267.59. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Insiders sold 2,209 shares of company stock valued at $371,293 in the last three months. 0.16% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Zoetis Stock Up 6.4 %

ZTS traded up $10.11 during trading on Thursday, hitting $168.61. The stock had a trading volume of 2,084,753 shares, compared to its average volume of 3,139,552. The stock has a 50 day simple moving average of $170.07 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $178.97. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.32, a quick ratio of 2.00 and a current ratio of 3.36. Zoetis Inc. has a twelve month low of $144.80 and a twelve month high of $201.92. The company has a market capitalization of $77.12 billion, a PE ratio of 33.13, a PEG ratio of 2.50 and a beta of 0.86.

Zoetis (NYSE:ZTS) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, May 2nd. The company reported $1.38 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.34 by $0.04. Zoetis had a return on equity of 51.25% and a net margin of 27.43%. The firm had revenue of $2.19 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $2.14 billion. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $1.31 EPS. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 9.5% on a year-over-year basis. On average, research analysts predict that Zoetis Inc. will post 5.78 earnings per share for the current year.

Zoetis Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, June 4th. Stockholders of record on Friday, April 19th will be issued a dividend of $0.432 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, April 18th. This represents a $1.73 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.02%. Zoetis’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 34.12%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several brokerages have issued reports on ZTS. Piper Sandler reiterated an “overweight” rating and set a $195.00 target price (down from $220.00) on shares of Zoetis in a report on Tuesday, April 16th. Stifel Nicolaus dropped their price objective on shares of Zoetis from $195.00 to $180.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday. The Goldman Sachs Group boosted their price objective on shares of Zoetis from $190.00 to $226.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, January 17th. StockNews.com cut Zoetis from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, February 20th. Finally, Barclays cut their price target on Zoetis from $260.00 to $230.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, April 23rd. Eight analysts have rated the stock with a buy rating, According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Buy” and an average target price of $216.13.

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.