BRITISH COLUMBIA INVESTMENT MANAGEMENT Corp Boosts Holdings in Zoetis Inc. (NYSE:ZTS)

BRITISH COLUMBIA INVESTMENT MANAGEMENT Corp increased its position in shares of Zoetis Inc. (NYSE:ZTS) by 13.9% during the 4th quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The institutional investor owned 86,754 shares of the company’s stock after purchasing an additional 10,617 shares during the quarter. BRITISH COLUMBIA INVESTMENT MANAGEMENT Corp’s holdings in Zoetis were worth $14,135,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in ZTS. Focus Partners Advisor Solutions LLC raised its position in Zoetis by 39.0% in the fourth quarter. Focus Partners Advisor Solutions LLC now owns 2,736 shares of the company’s stock valued at $446,000 after purchasing an additional 768 shares during the period. Glen Eagle Advisors LLC increased its position in shares of Zoetis by 13.5% during the 4th quarter. Glen Eagle Advisors LLC now owns 8,669 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,413,000 after purchasing an additional 1,034 shares during the last quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC increased its position in shares of Zoetis by 4.7% during the 4th quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC now owns 4,078,578 shares of the company’s stock worth $664,523,000 after purchasing an additional 182,472 shares during the last quarter. Voloridge Investment Management LLC purchased a new stake in Zoetis in the 4th quarter valued at about $54,451,000. Finally, Waverly Advisors LLC acquired a new position in Zoetis in the fourth quarter valued at about $494,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 92.80% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research analysts have weighed in on the stock. StockNews.com raised shares of Zoetis from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, March 7th. Morgan Stanley lowered their price objective on shares of Zoetis from $243.00 to $238.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, February 14th. UBS Group cut their target price on Zoetis from $189.00 to $170.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, May 7th. Stifel Nicolaus decreased their price target on Zoetis from $180.00 to $165.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, April 14th. Finally, Barclays raised their price target on Zoetis from $242.00 to $244.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday, February 14th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating, eight have assigned a buy rating and two have issued a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Zoetis has a consensus rating of “Buy” and an average price target of $212.75.

Insider Buying and Selling at Zoetis

In related news, Director Willie M. Reed sold 1,210 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, March 11th. The shares were sold at an average price of $166.14, for a total transaction of $201,029.40. Following the sale, the director now directly owns 11,245 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,868,244.30. This represents a 9.71% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, EVP Roxanne Lagano sold 326 shares of Zoetis stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, March 10th. The stock was sold at an average price of $170.00, for a total transaction of $55,420.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 15,781 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,682,770. This represents a 2.02% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.18% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Zoetis Price Performance

Zoetis stock opened at $161.33 on Thursday. The firm has a market cap of $71.82 billion, a PE ratio of 29.49, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.78 and a beta of 0.94. Zoetis Inc. has a 52-week low of $139.70 and a 52-week high of $200.33. The company has a quick ratio of 1.08, a current ratio of 1.75 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.09. The company’s 50 day moving average is $156.58 and its two-hundred day moving average is $165.05.

Zoetis (NYSE:ZTS) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, May 6th. The company reported $1.48 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.40 by $0.08. The business had revenue of $2.22 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $2.20 billion. Zoetis had a return on equity of 53.82% and a net margin of 26.86%. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 1.4% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the firm earned $1.38 earnings per share. On average, research analysts expect that Zoetis Inc. will post 6.07 EPS for the current fiscal year.

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.