Smartleaf Asset Management LLC Acquires 1,012 Shares of Zoetis Inc. (NYSE:ZTS)

Smartleaf Asset Management LLC boosted its holdings in Zoetis Inc. (NYSE:ZTS) by 32.7% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 4,105 shares of the company’s stock after purchasing an additional 1,012 shares during the period. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC’s holdings in Zoetis were worth $666,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Other hedge funds have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Atlantic Edge Private Wealth Management LLC grew its position in shares of Zoetis by 482.8% in the 4th quarter. Atlantic Edge Private Wealth Management LLC now owns 169 shares of the company’s stock valued at $28,000 after acquiring an additional 140 shares during the period. Darwin Wealth Management LLC bought a new position in shares of Zoetis in the 3rd quarter valued at about $31,000. First Personal Financial Services bought a new position in shares of Zoetis in the 3rd quarter valued at about $33,000. Capital Performance Advisors LLP bought a new position in shares of Zoetis in the 3rd quarter valued at about $33,000. Finally, Dunhill Financial LLC grew its position in shares of Zoetis by 80.6% in the 3rd quarter. Dunhill Financial LLC now owns 168 shares of the company’s stock valued at $33,000 after acquiring an additional 75 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 92.80% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several analysts recently commented on the stock. StockNews.com downgraded shares of Zoetis from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Tuesday, February 25th. Leerink Partners assumed coverage on shares of Zoetis in a report on Monday, December 2nd. They set an “outperform” rating and a $215.00 target price for the company. Piper Sandler lifted their target price on shares of Zoetis from $200.00 to $205.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Thursday, February 27th. Leerink Partnrs raised shares of Zoetis to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Monday, December 2nd. Finally, UBS Group assumed coverage on shares of Zoetis in a report on Monday, December 9th. They set a “neutral” rating and a $196.00 target price for the company. Two equities research analysts have 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. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Zoetis currently has an average rating of “Buy” and an average price target of $215.90.

Zoetis Price Performance

Shares of Zoetis stock opened at $170.47 on Tuesday. Zoetis Inc. has a twelve month low of $144.80 and a twelve month high of $200.33. The company has a quick ratio of 1.08, a current ratio of 1.75 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.09. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $166.42 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $177.16. The stock has a market capitalization of $76.34 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 31.16, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.78 and a beta of 0.90.

Zoetis (NYSE:ZTS) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, February 13th. The company reported $1.40 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.37 by $0.03. The company had revenue of $2.32 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $2.30 billion. Zoetis had a net margin of 26.86% and a return on equity of 53.82%. Analysts forecast that Zoetis Inc. will post 6.07 EPS for the current year.

Zoetis Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, June 3rd. Stockholders of record on Monday, April 21st will be given a $0.50 dividend. This represents a $2.00 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.17%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, April 21st. Zoetis’s payout ratio is presently 36.56%.

Insider Activity

In other news, EVP Roxanne Lagano sold 326 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, February 11th. The shares were sold at an average price of $171.18, for a total value of $55,804.68. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 16,107 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,757,196.26. The trade was a 1.98 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Corporate insiders own 0.16% of the company’s stock.

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.