New World Advisors LLC Raises Stock Position in Zoetis Inc. (NYSE:ZTS)

New World Advisors LLC boosted its holdings in Zoetis Inc. (NYSE:ZTS) by 22.9% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 3,384 shares of the company’s stock after buying an additional 631 shares during the period. Zoetis accounts for approximately 0.1% of New World Advisors LLC’s holdings, making the stock its 29th biggest position. New World Advisors LLC’s holdings in Zoetis were worth $551,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of the business. Y Intercept Hong Kong Ltd purchased a new stake in Zoetis in the 4th quarter worth $3,530,000. Union Bancaire Privee UBP SA purchased a new stake in Zoetis in the 4th quarter worth $898,000. World Equity Group Inc. purchased a new stake in Zoetis in the 4th quarter worth $342,000. Fjarde AP Fonden Fourth Swedish National Pension Fund increased its stake in Zoetis by 13.4% in the 4th quarter. Fjarde AP Fonden Fourth Swedish National Pension Fund now owns 101,811 shares of the company’s stock worth $16,588,000 after buying an additional 12,000 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Cabot Wealth Management Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of Zoetis by 3.7% during the 4th quarter. Cabot Wealth Management Inc. now owns 62,483 shares of the company’s stock valued at $10,180,000 after purchasing an additional 2,247 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 92.80% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research firms have commented on ZTS. Leerink Partnrs raised shares of Zoetis to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Monday, December 2nd. Barclays increased their price objective on shares of Zoetis from $242.00 to $244.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, February 14th. Piper Sandler dropped their price objective on shares of Zoetis from $210.00 to $200.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Monday, February 10th. Leerink Partners began coverage on shares of Zoetis in a report on Monday, December 2nd. They set an “outperform” rating and a $215.00 price objective for the company. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus dropped their price objective on shares of Zoetis from $210.00 to $180.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, January 7th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating, nine have given a buy rating and two have assigned a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Zoetis presently has a consensus rating of “Buy” and an average price target of $215.40.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, EVP Roxanne Lagano sold 326 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, February 11th. The shares were sold at an average price of $171.18, for a total value of $55,804.68. Following the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 16,107 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,757,196.26. This represents a 1.98 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. 0.16% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Zoetis Stock Up 1.9 %

Shares of NYSE:ZTS opened at $160.39 on Monday. The company has a current ratio of 1.75, a quick ratio of 1.08 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.09. Zoetis Inc. has a 12 month low of $144.80 and a 12 month high of $200.53. The company has a 50-day moving average price of $166.51 and a 200 day moving average price of $177.94. The company has a market cap of $71.82 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 29.32, a PEG ratio of 2.78 and a beta of 0.90.

Zoetis (NYSE:ZTS) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, February 13th. The company reported $1.40 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.37 by $0.03. Zoetis had a net margin of 26.86% and a return on equity of 53.82%. The company had revenue of $2.32 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.30 billion. As a group, equities research analysts predict that Zoetis Inc. will post 6.07 earnings per share for the current year.

Zoetis Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, June 3rd. Investors of record on Monday, April 21st will be given a $0.50 dividend. This represents a $2.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.25%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, April 21st. Zoetis’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 36.56%.

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.