Sentry Investment Management LLC Reduces Stock Position in Zoetis Inc. (NYSE:ZTS)

Sentry Investment Management LLC reduced its holdings in shares of Zoetis Inc. (NYSE:ZTS) by 10.9% in the 2nd quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The fund owned 2,152 shares of the company’s stock after selling 262 shares during the period. Sentry Investment Management LLC’s holdings in Zoetis were worth $373,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds have also modified their holdings of the business. Webster Bank N. A. lifted its stake in shares of Zoetis by 89.1% during the 1st 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 period. Private Wealth Management Group LLC purchased a new position in shares of Zoetis in the 4th quarter worth $33,000. Neo Ivy Capital Management acquired a new position in Zoetis in the fourth quarter valued at $40,000. LRI Investments LLC acquired a new position in Zoetis in the first quarter valued at $43,000. Finally, Blue Bell Private Wealth Management LLC grew its position in Zoetis by 111.6% during the first quarter. Blue Bell Private Wealth Management LLC now owns 273 shares of the company’s stock valued at $46,000 after acquiring an additional 144 shares during the period. 92.80% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Zoetis Stock Performance

Shares of ZTS stock opened at $189.99 on Thursday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.32, a current ratio of 3.45 and a quick ratio of 2.09. The company’s fifty day moving average price is $182.22 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $174.42. The firm has a market capitalization of $86.07 billion, a P/E ratio of 36.61, a P/E/G ratio of 2.90 and a beta of 0.88. Zoetis Inc. has a 12 month low of $144.80 and a 12 month high of $201.92.

Zoetis (NYSE:ZTS) last released its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, August 6th. The company reported $1.56 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.49 by $0.07. Zoetis had a return on equity of 50.67% and a net margin of 26.29%. The business had revenue of $2.36 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $2.31 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $1.41 earnings per share. The company’s revenue was up 8.3% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, research analysts anticipate that Zoetis Inc. will post 5.84 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities analysts have recently weighed in on the company. BTIG Research lifted their price objective on Zoetis from $220.00 to $225.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, August 12th. Stifel Nicolaus reaffirmed a “buy” rating and set a $200.00 price target on shares of Zoetis in a research report on Tuesday, August 27th. Piper Sandler increased their price objective on shares of Zoetis from $195.00 to $210.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, August 14th. Finally, Argus upgraded shares of Zoetis to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Friday, August 9th. Nine investment analysts have rated the stock with a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Buy” and a consensus target price of $217.11.

About Zoetis

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.