Griffin Asset Management Inc. Has $5.49 Million Position in Zoetis Inc. (NYSE:ZTS)

Griffin Asset Management Inc. grew its stake in Zoetis Inc. (NYSE:ZTS) by 14.1% in the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 32,431 shares of the company’s stock after buying an additional 4,008 shares during the period. Griffin Asset Management Inc.’s holdings in Zoetis were worth $5,488,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Other hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Hennion & Walsh Asset Management Inc. boosted its holdings in Zoetis by 73.9% in the first quarter. Hennion & Walsh Asset Management Inc. now owns 2,315 shares of the company’s stock valued at $392,000 after acquiring an additional 984 shares during the last quarter. Webster Bank N. A. boosted its stake 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 purchasing an additional 82 shares during the last quarter. New England Research & Management Inc. boosted its stake in shares of Zoetis by 6.5% in the 1st quarter. New England Research & Management Inc. now owns 25,093 shares of the company’s stock valued at $4,246,000 after purchasing an additional 1,525 shares during the last quarter. Norway Savings Bank increased its position in shares of Zoetis by 5.6% during the first quarter. Norway Savings Bank now owns 4,832 shares of the company’s stock worth $818,000 after buying an additional 255 shares during the period. Finally, Capital Insight Partners LLC raised its stake in Zoetis by 30.6% during the first quarter. Capital Insight Partners LLC now owns 5,106 shares of the company’s stock worth $864,000 after buying an additional 1,195 shares during the last quarter. 92.80% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Zoetis Stock Down 1.8 %

Shares of NYSE ZTS traded down $3.10 during midday trading on Friday, hitting $173.36. 4,189,580 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 2,374,760. Zoetis Inc. has a one year low of $144.80 and a one year high of $201.92. The business has a 50 day moving average price of $168.69 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $178.81. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.30, a quick ratio of 1.94 and a current ratio of 3.33. The company has a market cap of $79.10 billion, a PE ratio of 33.40, a P/E/G ratio of 2.74 and a beta of 0.88.

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

Zoetis Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, September 4th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, July 18th will be paid 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 1.00%. Zoetis’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 33.33%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, EVP Roxanne Lagano sold 923 shares of Zoetis stock in a transaction that occurred 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 transaction, the executive vice president now owns 14,800 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,237,316. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Corporate insiders own 0.16% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of analysts have commented on ZTS shares. HSBC cut their price target on shares of Zoetis from $230.00 to $225.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, May 8th. Stifel Nicolaus decreased their target price on Zoetis from $195.00 to $180.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, April 30th. Barclays lowered their target price on Zoetis from $260.00 to $230.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, April 23rd. The Goldman Sachs Group reduced their price objective on shares of Zoetis from $223.00 to $196.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Monday, May 6th. Finally, Piper Sandler reiterated an “overweight” rating and set a $195.00 target price (down previously from $220.00) on shares of Zoetis in a research report on Tuesday, April 16th. Eight research analysts have rated the stock with a buy rating, According to data from MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of “Buy” and a consensus target price of $211.75.

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.