Zoetis Inc. (NYSE:ZTS) Stake Lowered by Highland Capital Management LLC

Highland Capital Management LLC trimmed its stake in shares of Zoetis Inc. (NYSE:ZTS) by 0.9% during the third quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 42,161 shares of the company’s stock after selling 385 shares during the quarter. Highland Capital Management LLC’s holdings in Zoetis were worth $8,237,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Webster Bank N. A. lifted its stake in Zoetis by 89.1% in the first quarter. Webster Bank N. A. now owns 174 shares of the company’s stock valued at $29,000 after buying an additional 82 shares during the last quarter. Quarry LP increased its holdings in shares of Zoetis by 273.2% in the 2nd quarter. Quarry LP now owns 209 shares of the company’s stock worth $36,000 after acquiring an additional 153 shares during the period. LRI Investments LLC bought a new stake in Zoetis in the 1st quarter valued at about $43,000. Central Valley Advisors LLC acquired a new position in Zoetis during the 2nd quarter valued at about $49,000. Finally, EdgeRock Capital LLC bought a new position in Zoetis in the 2nd quarter worth about $56,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 92.80% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several brokerages have recently issued reports on ZTS. Argus upgraded Zoetis to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Friday, August 9th. Stifel Nicolaus increased their price target on Zoetis from $200.00 to $210.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, September 18th. BTIG Research lifted their price objective on shares of Zoetis from $220.00 to $225.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, August 12th. Piper Sandler increased their target price on shares of Zoetis from $195.00 to $210.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, August 14th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their target price on shares of Zoetis from $225.00 to $230.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday, October 11th. Ten equities research analysts have rated the stock with a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Zoetis currently has a consensus rating of “Buy” and an average target price of $221.44.

Zoetis Trading Down 0.8 %

Shares of NYSE:ZTS opened at $180.01 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.32, a quick ratio of 2.09 and a current ratio of 3.45. The stock has a market capitalization of $82.14 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 34.68, a PEG ratio of 2.94 and a beta of 0.89. Zoetis Inc. has a 1-year low of $144.80 and a 1-year high of $201.92. The company has a 50 day moving average price of $189.18 and a 200 day moving average price of $177.61.

Zoetis (NYSE:ZTS) last released its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, August 6th. The company reported $1.56 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.49 by $0.07. The business had revenue of $2.36 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.31 billion. Zoetis had a return on equity of 50.67% and a net margin of 26.29%. The company’s revenue was up 8.3% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the company posted $1.41 EPS. On average, research analysts anticipate that Zoetis Inc. will post 5.83 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Zoetis Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, December 3rd. Shareholders of record on Thursday, October 31st will be issued a dividend of $0.432 per share. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, October 31st. This represents a $1.73 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.96%. Zoetis’s payout ratio is presently 33.14%.

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.