Sumitomo Mitsui DS Asset Management Company Ltd Raises Position in Zoetis Inc. (NYSE:ZTS)

Sumitomo Mitsui DS Asset Management Company Ltd increased its position in shares of Zoetis Inc. (NYSE:ZTS) by 7.2% in the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 94,921 shares of the company’s stock after purchasing an additional 6,348 shares during the period. Sumitomo Mitsui DS Asset Management Company Ltd’s holdings in Zoetis were worth $18,546,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in ZTS. Webster Bank N. A. lifted its holdings in shares of Zoetis by 89.1% in the 1st 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 period. Quarry LP lifted its holdings in Zoetis by 273.2% in the second quarter. Quarry LP now owns 209 shares of the company’s stock valued at $36,000 after acquiring an additional 153 shares during the period. LRI Investments LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Zoetis during the 1st quarter worth $43,000. Hazlett Burt & Watson Inc. boosted its position in shares of Zoetis by 60.7% during the 1st quarter. Hazlett Burt & Watson Inc. now owns 270 shares of the company’s stock worth $46,000 after purchasing an additional 102 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Central Valley Advisors LLC acquired a new position in shares of Zoetis during the 2nd quarter worth $49,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 92.80% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several analysts recently commented on the stock. Piper Sandler raised their price objective on shares of Zoetis from $195.00 to $210.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, August 14th. Argus upgraded shares of Zoetis to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Friday, August 9th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their price target on Zoetis from $225.00 to $230.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, October 11th. Stifel Nicolaus raised their price objective on Zoetis from $200.00 to $210.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, September 18th. Finally, BTIG Research boosted their target price on Zoetis from $220.00 to $225.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, August 12th. Ten equities research analysts have rated the stock with a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Buy” and a consensus target price of $221.44.

Zoetis Price Performance

NYSE:ZTS opened at $191.00 on Friday. Zoetis Inc. has a 12-month low of $144.80 and a 12-month high of $201.92. The firm has a market cap of $87.15 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 36.80, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.99 and a beta of 0.89. The company’s 50-day moving average is $188.82 and its two-hundred day moving average is $176.80. The company has a current ratio of 3.45, a quick ratio of 2.09 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.32.

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

Zoetis Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, December 3rd. Shareholders of record on Thursday, October 31st will be paid a dividend of $0.432 per share. This represents a $1.73 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.90%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, October 31st. Zoetis’s dividend payout ratio is presently 33.14%.

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.