Carnegie Investment Counsel Reduces Holdings in Zoetis Inc. (NYSE:ZTS)

Carnegie Investment Counsel trimmed its stake in shares of Zoetis Inc. (NYSE:ZTS) by 1.0% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 154,945 shares of the company’s stock after selling 1,631 shares during the quarter. Carnegie Investment Counsel’s holdings in Zoetis were worth $25,245,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

A number of other large investors have also bought and sold shares of ZTS. West Coast Financial LLC grew its holdings in Zoetis by 1.6% in the 4th quarter. West Coast Financial LLC now owns 70,593 shares of the company’s stock worth $11,502,000 after acquiring an additional 1,130 shares during the last quarter. Brady Family Wealth LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Zoetis by 18.6% during the fourth quarter. Brady Family Wealth LLC now owns 1,416 shares of the company’s stock worth $231,000 after purchasing an additional 222 shares during the period. Outlook Wealth Advisors LLC grew its stake in shares of Zoetis by 66.9% in the fourth quarter. Outlook Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 5,371 shares of the company’s stock worth $875,000 after purchasing an additional 2,153 shares during the last quarter. Burney Co. increased its holdings in Zoetis by 15.2% during the 4th quarter. Burney Co. now owns 4,749 shares of the company’s stock valued at $774,000 after purchasing an additional 627 shares during the period. Finally, Thurston Springer Miller Herd & Titak Inc. raised its position in Zoetis by 25.5% during the 4th quarter. Thurston Springer Miller Herd & Titak Inc. now owns 6,565 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,070,000 after purchasing an additional 1,334 shares during the last quarter. 92.80% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Zoetis Price Performance

Shares of NYSE ZTS opened at $169.30 on Friday. The company has a 50 day simple moving average of $171.25 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $180.07. Zoetis Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $144.80 and a fifty-two week high of $200.53. The company has a market capitalization of $76.38 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 31.82, a P/E/G ratio of 2.51 and a beta of 0.89. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.26, a quick ratio of 2.27 and a current ratio of 3.69.

Zoetis (NYSE:ZTS) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Monday, November 4th. The company reported $1.58 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.46 by $0.12. Zoetis had a return on equity of 51.98% and a net margin of 26.55%. The company had revenue of $2.40 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.29 billion. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $1.36 EPS. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 11.6% on a year-over-year basis. Analysts expect that Zoetis Inc. will post 5.91 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Zoetis Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, March 4th. Investors of record on Tuesday, January 21st will be paid a $0.50 dividend. This is a boost from Zoetis’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.43. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, January 21st. This represents a $2.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.18%. Zoetis’s payout ratio is presently 32.52%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities research analysts have recently weighed in on ZTS shares. UBS Group began coverage on Zoetis in a research report on Monday, December 9th. They issued a “neutral” rating and a $196.00 price objective on the stock. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their price objective on shares of Zoetis from $225.00 to $230.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday, October 11th. Leerink Partners began coverage on shares of Zoetis in a research report on Monday, December 2nd. They issued an “outperform” rating and a $215.00 target price for the company. Leerink Partnrs upgraded shares of Zoetis to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Monday, December 2nd. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus lowered 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 issued a buy rating and two have assigned a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of “Buy” and an average price target of $211.89.

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.