Waverton Investment Management Ltd Boosts Stock Position in Zoetis Inc. (NYSE:ZTS)

Waverton Investment Management Ltd raised its holdings in Zoetis Inc. (NYSE:ZTS) by 7.2% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 335,536 shares of the company’s stock after purchasing an additional 22,637 shares during the quarter. Zoetis accounts for 0.9% of Waverton Investment Management Ltd’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 27th largest position. Waverton Investment Management Ltd’s holdings in Zoetis were worth $54,707,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other large investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Hancock Whitney Corp increased its stake in shares of Zoetis by 0.3% during the third quarter. Hancock Whitney Corp now owns 18,569 shares of the company’s stock valued at $3,628,000 after buying an additional 61 shares during the period. Strategy Asset Managers LLC increased its position in Zoetis by 3.5% during the 3rd quarter. Strategy Asset Managers LLC now owns 1,822 shares of the company’s stock valued at $356,000 after purchasing an additional 62 shares during the period. VeraBank N.A. raised its holdings in Zoetis by 4.1% in the 4th quarter. VeraBank N.A. now owns 1,562 shares of the company’s stock worth $254,000 after purchasing an additional 62 shares in the last quarter. Procyon Advisors LLC lifted its position in shares of Zoetis by 1.4% in the 4th quarter. Procyon Advisors LLC now owns 4,712 shares of the company’s stock worth $768,000 after purchasing an additional 63 shares during the period. Finally, Deseret Mutual Benefit Administrators boosted its stake in shares of Zoetis by 6.6% during the 4th quarter. Deseret Mutual Benefit Administrators now owns 1,045 shares of the company’s stock valued at $170,000 after purchasing an additional 65 shares in the last quarter. 92.80% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Buying and Selling at Zoetis

In other news, EVP Roxanne Lagano sold 326 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, February 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $171.18, for a total value of $55,804.68. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 16,107 shares in the company, valued at $2,757,196.26. The trade was a 1.98 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Company insiders own 0.16% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several analysts have weighed in on ZTS shares. Stifel Nicolaus cut their price objective on Zoetis from $210.00 to $180.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, January 7th. Leerink Partnrs raised Zoetis to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Monday, December 2nd. Leerink Partners assumed coverage on Zoetis in a report on Monday, December 2nd. They issued an “outperform” rating and a $215.00 price objective for the company. Piper Sandler dropped their target price on shares of Zoetis from $210.00 to $200.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Monday, February 10th. Finally, Morgan Stanley decreased their price target on shares of Zoetis from $243.00 to $238.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, February 14th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating, nine have assigned a buy rating and two have assigned a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of “Buy” and an average target price of $215.40.

Zoetis Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:ZTS opened at $160.39 on Monday. The company has a market capitalization of $71.82 billion, a PE ratio of 29.32, a PEG ratio of 2.78 and a beta of 0.90. The business has a fifty day moving average price of $166.51 and a 200-day moving average price of $177.94. Zoetis Inc. has a 1-year low of $144.80 and a 1-year high of $200.53. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.09, a current ratio of 1.75 and a quick ratio of 1.08.

Zoetis (NYSE:ZTS) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, February 13th. The company reported $1.40 earnings per share 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 net margin of 26.86% and a return on equity of 53.82%. As a group, equities analysts expect that Zoetis Inc. will post 6.07 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Zoetis Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, June 3rd. Investors of record on Monday, April 21st will be given a $0.50 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Monday, April 21st. This represents a $2.00 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.25%. Zoetis’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 36.56%.

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.