Sivia Capital Partners LLC Buys Shares of 1,926 Zoetis Inc. (NYSE:ZTS)

Sivia Capital Partners LLC bought a new stake in shares of Zoetis Inc. (NYSE:ZTS) during the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm bought 1,926 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $317,000.

A number of other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Atlantic Edge Private Wealth Management LLC increased its holdings in Zoetis by 482.8% during the fourth 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. increased 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 acquiring an additional 166 shares during the period. Navigoe LLC purchased a new position in shares of Zoetis in the 4th quarter valued at $30,000. Murphy & Mullick Capital Management Corp purchased a new position in Zoetis in the fourth quarter valued at about $44,000. Finally, Asset Planning Inc purchased a new position in Zoetis in the fourth quarter valued at about $58,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 92.80% of the company’s stock.

Zoetis Stock Performance

Shares of ZTS stock opened at $170.15 on Monday. The company has a market capitalization of $75.75 billion, a P/E ratio of 31.11, a P/E/G ratio of 2.78 and a beta of 0.94. The business’s 50 day moving average is $157.41 and its two-hundred day moving average is $164.21. The company has a current ratio of 1.75, a quick ratio of 1.08 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.09. Zoetis Inc. has a 12-month low of $139.70 and a 12-month high of $200.33.

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

Zoetis Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, September 3rd. Investors of record on Friday, July 18th will be paid a $0.50 dividend. This represents a $2.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.18%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, July 18th. Zoetis’s dividend payout ratio is presently 35.91%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities research analysts have recently weighed in on the company. UBS Group dropped their price target on Zoetis from $189.00 to $170.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, May 7th. Barclays boosted their price objective on shares of Zoetis from $242.00 to $244.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, February 14th. Stifel Nicolaus dropped their price objective on shares of Zoetis from $180.00 to $165.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Monday, April 14th. Wall Street Zen raised shares of Zoetis from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, March 7th. Finally, Morgan Stanley dropped their price objective on shares of Zoetis from $243.00 to $238.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, February 14th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating, eight have given a buy rating and two have assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, Zoetis currently has a consensus rating of “Buy” and an average target price of $212.75.

Insider Activity at Zoetis

In related news, Director Willie M. Reed sold 1,210 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, March 11th. The shares were sold at an average price of $166.14, for a total value of $201,029.40. Following the transaction, the director now directly owns 11,245 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,868,244.30. This trade represents a 9.71% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, EVP Roxanne Lagano sold 652 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, June 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $170.00, for a total value of $110,840.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 15,129 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,571,930. This trade represents a 4.13% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.18% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

About Zoetis

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.