Zoetis Inc. (NYSE:ZTS) Position Reduced by Summit Global Investments

Summit Global Investments trimmed its stake in shares of Zoetis Inc. (NYSE:ZTS) by 6.7% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 4,824 shares of the company’s stock after selling 349 shares during the quarter. Summit Global Investments’ holdings in Zoetis were worth $786,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other large investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Howard Capital Management Group LLC lifted its position in shares of Zoetis by 0.8% in the 3rd quarter. Howard Capital Management Group LLC now owns 104,866 shares of the company’s stock worth $20,489,000 after buying an additional 883 shares during the last quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. lifted its position in shares of Zoetis by 17.3% in the 3rd quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 2,377,403 shares of the company’s stock worth $464,497,000 after buying an additional 351,372 shares during the last quarter. Landscape Capital Management L.L.C. bought a new position in shares of Zoetis in the 3rd quarter worth about $458,000. Pacer Advisors Inc. lifted its position in shares of Zoetis by 15.4% in the 3rd quarter. Pacer Advisors Inc. now owns 46,611 shares of the company’s stock worth $9,107,000 after buying an additional 6,237 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Nwam LLC lifted its position in shares of Zoetis by 4.1% in the 3rd quarter. Nwam LLC now owns 4,908 shares of the company’s stock worth $959,000 after buying an additional 193 shares during the last quarter. 92.80% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research analysts have recently issued reports on the stock. Leerink Partnrs upgraded shares of Zoetis to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Monday, December 2nd. StockNews.com upgraded shares of Zoetis from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, March 7th. Morgan Stanley reduced their price target on shares of Zoetis from $243.00 to $238.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, February 14th. Piper Sandler lifted their price objective on shares of Zoetis from $200.00 to $205.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Thursday, February 27th. Finally, UBS Group assumed coverage on shares of Zoetis in a research report on Monday, December 9th. They issued a “neutral” rating and a $196.00 price objective on the stock. One research analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating, ten have issued a buy rating and two have assigned a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of “Buy” and a consensus price target of $215.90.

Zoetis Stock Down 0.2 %

Zoetis stock opened at $162.86 on Monday. The stock has a market cap of $72.93 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 29.77, a PEG ratio of 2.78 and a beta of 0.94. The company has a current ratio of 1.75, a quick ratio of 1.08 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.09. The company’s 50-day moving average price is $166.76 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $175.38. Zoetis Inc. has a 52 week low of $144.80 and a 52 week high of $200.33.

Zoetis (NYSE:ZTS) last released its earnings results on Thursday, February 13th. The company reported $1.40 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.37 by $0.03. The firm had revenue of $2.32 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $2.30 billion. Zoetis had a net margin of 26.86% and a return on equity of 53.82%. On average, analysts expect that Zoetis Inc. will post 6.07 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Zoetis Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, June 3rd. Stockholders of record on Monday, April 21st will be paid a $0.50 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Monday, April 21st. This represents a $2.00 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.23%. Zoetis’s dividend payout ratio is currently 36.56%.

Insider Transactions at Zoetis

In other news, Director Willie M. Reed sold 1,210 shares of Zoetis stock in a transaction that occurred on 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 owns 11,245 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,868,244.30. The trade was a 9.71 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. 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 directly owns 15,781 shares in the company, valued at $2,682,770. This represents a 2.02 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 1,862 shares of company stock valued at $312,254 in the last quarter. Insiders own 0.16% of the company’s stock.

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.