Zoetis Inc. (NYSE:ZTS) Shares Sold by S.A. Mason LLC

S.A. Mason LLC lessened its stake in Zoetis Inc. (NYSE:ZTS) by 2.4% in the 1st quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The firm owned 3,997 shares of the company’s stock after selling 99 shares during the quarter. S.A. Mason LLC’s holdings in Zoetis were worth $676,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in the company. Blue Bell Private Wealth Management LLC lifted its stake in Zoetis by 222.5% during the fourth quarter. Blue Bell Private Wealth Management LLC now owns 129 shares of the company’s stock worth $25,000 after purchasing an additional 89 shares during the last quarter. Independence Bank of Kentucky grew its holdings in Zoetis by 371.4% in the fourth quarter. Independence Bank of Kentucky now owns 165 shares of the company’s stock valued at $33,000 after purchasing an additional 130 shares during the last quarter. Private Wealth Management Group LLC acquired a new stake in Zoetis in the fourth quarter valued at $33,000. Ramirez Asset Management Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Zoetis in the third quarter valued at $35,000. Finally, Gladius Capital Management LP purchased a new stake in shares of Zoetis in the fourth quarter valued at $40,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 92.80% of the company’s stock.

Insider Activity at Zoetis

In related news, EVP Roxanne Lagano sold 923 shares of Zoetis stock in a transaction on Thursday, April 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $151.17, for a total transaction of $139,529.91. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now owns 14,800 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,237,316. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Insiders own 0.16% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several analysts have recently issued reports on the company. Stifel Nicolaus reduced their price objective on Zoetis from $195.00 to $180.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, April 30th. HSBC reduced their target price on Zoetis from $230.00 to $225.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, May 8th. Barclays reduced their target price on Zoetis from $260.00 to $230.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, April 23rd. Piper Sandler reiterated an “overweight” rating and set a $195.00 target price (down from $220.00) on shares of Zoetis in a research report on Tuesday, April 16th. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group reduced their target price on Zoetis from $223.00 to $196.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, May 6th. Eight equities research analysts have rated the stock with a buy rating, Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Zoetis presently has an average rating of “Buy” and an average price target of $211.75.

Zoetis Price Performance

Shares of ZTS stock traded up $9.51 during mid-day trading on Thursday, hitting $180.41. 665,103 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 2,931,672. Zoetis Inc. has a twelve month low of $144.80 and a twelve month high of $201.92. The firm has a market cap of $82.32 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 34.76, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.61 and a beta of 0.88. The company’s 50-day simple moving average is $167.30 and its 200-day simple moving average is $179.00. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.30, a quick ratio of 1.94 and a current ratio of 3.33.

Zoetis (NYSE:ZTS) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, May 2nd. The company reported $1.38 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.34 by $0.04. The business had revenue of $2.19 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $2.14 billion. Zoetis had a return on equity of 50.34% and a net margin of 27.38%. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 9.5% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $1.31 EPS. As a group, equities research analysts expect that Zoetis Inc. will post 5.76 earnings per share for the current year.

Zoetis Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, September 4th. Investors of record on Thursday, July 18th will be given a dividend of $0.432 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, July 18th. This represents a $1.73 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.96%. Zoetis’s payout ratio is 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.