Zoetis (NYSE:ZTS) Shares Down 4.4% Following Analyst Downgrade

Zoetis Inc. (NYSE:ZTS)’s stock price dropped 4.4% during trading on Friday after Morgan Stanley lowered their price target on the stock from $243.00 to $238.00. Morgan Stanley currently has an overweight rating on the stock. Zoetis traded as low as $158.36 and last traded at $157.69. Approximately 1,536,488 shares were traded during trading, a decline of 47% from the average daily volume of 2,906,391 shares. The stock had previously closed at $164.93.

Other research analysts have also issued research reports about the stock. Stifel Nicolaus reduced their price objective on shares of Zoetis from $210.00 to $180.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, January 7th. Leerink Partners assumed coverage on Zoetis in a research note on Monday, December 2nd. They issued an “outperform” rating and a $215.00 target price for the company. Leerink Partnrs raised Zoetis to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Monday, December 2nd. Piper Sandler cut their price objective on Zoetis from $210.00 to $200.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Monday. Finally, UBS Group started coverage on Zoetis in a research note on Monday, December 9th. They set a “neutral” rating and a $196.00 target price for the company. One research analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating, ten have assigned a buy rating and two have issued a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of “Buy” and a consensus target price of $213.50.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Zoetis news, EVP Roxanne Lagano sold 326 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, February 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $171.18, for a total transaction of $55,804.68. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 16,107 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,757,196.26. The trade was a 1.98 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. 0.16% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Zoetis

Institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Norges Bank acquired a new position in shares of Zoetis during the 4th quarter worth about $824,321,000. Mizuho Securities USA LLC increased its position in Zoetis by 13,726.9% during the third quarter. Mizuho Securities USA LLC now owns 4,865,000 shares of the company’s stock worth $950,524,000 after buying an additional 4,829,815 shares during the last quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP raised its stake in Zoetis by 78.5% in the fourth quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 6,958,543 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,133,755,000 after buying an additional 3,059,255 shares during the period. Raymond James Financial Inc. bought a new stake in Zoetis in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $196,651,000. Finally, Polen Capital Management LLC lifted its position in shares of Zoetis by 17.5% in the fourth quarter. Polen Capital Management LLC now owns 7,483,194 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,219,237,000 after buying an additional 1,116,541 shares during the last quarter. 92.80% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Zoetis Price Performance

The company has a current ratio of 3.69, a quick ratio of 2.27 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.26. The company has a market capitalization of $71.32 billion, a P/E ratio of 29.67, a P/E/G ratio of 2.77 and a beta of 0.90. The company has a 50 day moving average price of $168.89 and a 200 day moving average price of $178.98.

Zoetis (NYSE:ZTS) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, February 13th. The company reported $1.40 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.37 by $0.03. Zoetis had a net margin of 26.55% and a return on equity of 51.98%. On average, equities analysts predict that Zoetis Inc. will post 5.9 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Zoetis Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, June 3rd. Shareholders of record on Monday, April 21st will be given a dividend of $0.50 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, April 21st. This represents a $2.00 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.27%. Zoetis’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 37.59%.

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.