Weaver Capital Management LLC Grows Position in Zoetis Inc. (NYSE:ZTS)

Weaver Capital Management LLC increased its stake in Zoetis Inc. (NYSE:ZTS) by 45.2% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 3,226 shares of the company’s stock after purchasing an additional 1,005 shares during the quarter. Weaver Capital Management LLC’s holdings in Zoetis were worth $526,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in ZTS. Mizuho Securities USA LLC raised its stake in shares of Zoetis by 13,726.9% during the 3rd quarter. Mizuho Securities USA LLC now owns 4,865,000 shares of the company’s stock valued at $950,524,000 after purchasing an additional 4,829,815 shares during the period. International Assets Investment Management LLC increased its stake in Zoetis by 41,235.7% in the 3rd quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC now owns 939,974 shares of the company’s stock worth $183,652,000 after acquiring an additional 937,700 shares during the last quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. increased its stake in Zoetis by 296.9% in the 4th quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. now owns 889,444 shares of the company’s stock worth $144,917,000 after acquiring an additional 665,331 shares during the last quarter. Nordea Investment Management AB increased its stake in Zoetis by 38.3% in the 4th quarter. Nordea Investment Management AB now owns 2,065,514 shares of the company’s stock worth $336,266,000 after acquiring an additional 572,511 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Holocene Advisors LP bought a new position in Zoetis in the 3rd quarter worth about $110,809,000. 92.80% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Zoetis Trading Up 0.2 %

Shares of ZTS stock opened at $172.24 on Wednesday. The stock has a market capitalization of $77.71 billion, a PE ratio of 32.38, a P/E/G ratio of 2.72 and a beta of 0.90. Zoetis Inc. has a 1-year low of $144.80 and a 1-year high of $200.53. The business has a 50-day moving average of $169.48 and a 200 day moving average of $179.39. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.26, a current ratio of 3.69 and a quick ratio of 2.27.

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 the consensus estimate of $1.46 by $0.12. Zoetis had a return on equity of 51.98% and a net margin of 26.55%. The firm had revenue of $2.40 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.29 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $1.36 EPS. The business’s revenue was up 11.6% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, sell-side analysts anticipate that Zoetis Inc. will post 5.9 earnings per share for the current year.

Zoetis Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, March 4th. Investors of record on Tuesday, January 21st will be given a dividend of $0.50 per share. This represents a $2.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.16%. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, January 21st. This is a positive change from Zoetis’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.43. Zoetis’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 37.59%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities analysts have weighed in on the company. UBS Group assumed coverage on Zoetis in a research note on Monday, December 9th. They issued a “neutral” rating and a $196.00 target price on the stock. Leerink Partners initiated coverage on Zoetis in a research note on Monday, December 2nd. They issued an “outperform” rating and a $215.00 target price on the stock. Stifel Nicolaus cut their price objective on Zoetis from $210.00 to $180.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, January 7th. Morgan Stanley cut their price objective on Zoetis from $248.00 to $243.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, January 29th. Finally, Leerink Partnrs upgraded Zoetis to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Monday, December 2nd. One research analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating, ten have assigned a buy rating and two have given a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Zoetis currently has a consensus rating of “Buy” and a consensus target price of $215.00.

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.