Janney Capital Management LLC Reduces Stake in Zoetis Inc. (NYSE:ZTS)

Janney Capital Management LLC lowered its stake in Zoetis Inc. (NYSE:ZTS) by 3.1% in the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 56,072 shares of the company’s stock after selling 1,774 shares during the period. Janney Capital Management LLC’s holdings in Zoetis were worth $9,488,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Blue Bell Private Wealth Management LLC grew its position in Zoetis by 222.5% in the fourth quarter. Blue Bell Private Wealth Management LLC now owns 129 shares of the company’s stock worth $25,000 after acquiring an additional 89 shares in the last quarter. Independence Bank of Kentucky lifted its stake in Zoetis by 371.4% in the fourth quarter. Independence Bank of Kentucky now owns 165 shares of the company’s stock worth $33,000 after purchasing an additional 130 shares during the last quarter. Private Wealth Management Group LLC bought a new stake in Zoetis in the fourth quarter worth about $33,000. 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 worth $29,000 after purchasing an additional 82 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Ramirez Asset Management Inc. bought a new stake in Zoetis in the third quarter worth about $35,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 92.80% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

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

Insider Activity

In other news, EVP Roxanne Lagano sold 923 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, April 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $151.17, for a total transaction of $139,529.91. Following the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 14,800 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,237,316. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Corporate insiders own 0.16% of the company’s stock.

Zoetis Trading Down 0.4 %

Shares of Zoetis stock traded down $0.64 on Friday, hitting $174.96. 1,812,072 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 2,242,600. The stock’s 50 day moving average price is $171.00 and its 200-day moving average price is $178.06. The company has a current ratio of 3.33, a quick ratio of 1.94 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.30. Zoetis Inc. has a 52 week low of $144.80 and a 52 week high of $201.92. The company has a market cap of $79.83 billion, a PE ratio of 33.71, a PEG ratio of 2.73 and a beta of 0.86.

Zoetis (NYSE:ZTS) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, May 2nd. The company reported $1.38 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.34 by $0.04. The company had revenue of $2.19 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.14 billion. Zoetis had a net margin of 27.38% and a return on equity of 50.34%. Zoetis’s revenue was up 9.5% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the company posted $1.31 earnings per share. Equities research analysts predict that Zoetis Inc. will post 5.76 EPS for the current year.

Zoetis Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, September 4th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, July 18th will be issued a dividend of $0.432 per share. This represents a $1.73 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.99%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, July 18th. Zoetis’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 33.33%.

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.