Lafayette Investments Inc. Makes New Investment in Zoetis Inc. (NYSE:ZTS)

Lafayette Investments Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Zoetis Inc. (NYSE:ZTS) in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund acquired 1,027 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $203,000.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Fidelis Capital Partners LLC boosted its stake in Zoetis by 49.1% during the fourth quarter. Fidelis Capital Partners LLC now owns 4,960 shares of the company’s stock worth $979,000 after buying an additional 1,634 shares during the period. Western Wealth Management LLC boosted its stake in shares of Zoetis by 5.3% during the fourth quarter. Western Wealth Management LLC now owns 7,325 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,446,000 after purchasing an additional 366 shares during the period. AIA Group Ltd boosted its stake in shares of Zoetis by 12.8% during the fourth quarter. AIA Group Ltd now owns 27,215 shares of the company’s stock valued at $5,371,000 after purchasing an additional 3,078 shares during the period. SFE Investment Counsel boosted its stake in shares of Zoetis by 0.7% during the fourth quarter. SFE Investment Counsel now owns 15,013 shares of the company’s stock valued at $2,963,000 after purchasing an additional 100 shares during the period. Finally, Tilt Investment Management Holdings PBC purchased a new stake in shares of Zoetis during the fourth quarter valued at $369,000. 92.80% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of analysts have recently issued reports on ZTS shares. Piper Sandler reissued an “overweight” rating and set a $195.00 target price (down from $220.00) on shares of Zoetis in a research note on Tuesday. StockNews.com downgraded Zoetis from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, February 20th. Stifel Nicolaus decreased their price objective on Zoetis from $215.00 to $195.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, April 2nd. Barclays lifted their price objective on Zoetis from $255.00 to $260.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Wednesday, February 14th. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group lifted their price objective on Zoetis from $190.00 to $226.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, January 17th. Eight investment analysts have rated the stock with a buy rating, According to MarketBeat, Zoetis has a consensus rating of “Buy” and an average target price of $221.75.

Insider Transactions at Zoetis

In other 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 transaction, the executive vice president now owns 14,800 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,237,316. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Insiders have sold a total of 2,209 shares of company stock worth $371,293 in the last quarter. Company insiders own 0.12% of the company’s stock.

Zoetis Price Performance

Shares of ZTS stock traded down $5.08 during trading hours on Friday, hitting $148.03. 2,085,854 shares of the company’s stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 2,974,174. The company has a quick ratio of 2.00, a current ratio of 3.36 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.32. The firm has a market cap of $67.70 billion, a P/E ratio of 29.32, a P/E/G ratio of 2.32 and a beta of 0.85. The firm has a 50 day moving average of $176.49 and a two-hundred day moving average of $180.20. Zoetis Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $147.11 and a fifty-two week high of $201.92.

Zoetis (NYSE:ZTS) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, February 13th. The company reported $1.24 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.32 by ($0.08). Zoetis had a net margin of 27.43% and a return on equity of 51.25%. The firm had revenue of $2.21 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.19 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $1.15 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 8.5% compared to the same quarter last year. Sell-side analysts forecast that Zoetis Inc. will post 5.79 EPS for the current year.

Zoetis Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, June 4th. Stockholders of record on Friday, April 19th will be issued a dividend of $0.432 per share. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, April 18th. This represents a $1.73 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.17%. Zoetis’s dividend payout ratio is presently 34.12%.

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.