Nomura Asset Management Co. Ltd. Sells 1,108 Shares of Zoetis Inc. (NYSE:ZTS)

Nomura Asset Management Co. Ltd. reduced its holdings in shares of Zoetis Inc. (NYSE:ZTS) by 0.6% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 176,033 shares of the company’s stock after selling 1,108 shares during the quarter. Nomura Asset Management Co. Ltd.’s holdings in Zoetis were worth $28,681,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Several other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of ZTS. Vanguard Group Inc. lifted its stake in Zoetis by 0.3% during the 4th quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 41,366,877 shares of the company’s stock valued at $6,739,905,000 after acquiring an additional 120,158 shares during the period. State Street Corp raised its holdings in shares of Zoetis by 0.5% during the third quarter. State Street Corp now owns 19,779,344 shares of the company’s stock valued at $3,864,488,000 after purchasing an additional 95,856 shares during the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC lifted its position in Zoetis by 1.8% during the third quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 10,427,760 shares of the company’s stock valued at $2,030,813,000 after purchasing an additional 185,364 shares during the period. Polen Capital Management LLC boosted its holdings in Zoetis by 17.5% in the fourth quarter. Polen Capital Management LLC now owns 7,483,194 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,219,237,000 after purchasing an additional 1,116,541 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Bank of New York Mellon Corp grew its position in Zoetis by 8.5% in the 4th quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 5,561,910 shares of the company’s stock worth $906,202,000 after purchasing an additional 433,429 shares during the period. 92.80% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities analysts have recently issued reports on ZTS shares. Barclays raised their price target on Zoetis from $242.00 to $244.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday, February 14th. Leerink Partnrs raised Zoetis to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Monday, December 2nd. StockNews.com raised shares of Zoetis from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, March 7th. UBS Group started coverage on shares of Zoetis in a report on Monday, December 9th. They issued a “neutral” rating and a $196.00 price objective on the stock. Finally, Leerink Partners initiated 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. One investment 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 MarketBeat.com, Zoetis currently has a consensus rating of “Buy” and a consensus target price of $215.90.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Zoetis news, Director Willie M. Reed sold 1,210 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, March 11th. The shares were sold at an average price of $166.14, for a total value of $201,029.40. Following the sale, the director now owns 11,245 shares in the company, valued at $1,868,244.30. The trade was a 9.71 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, EVP Roxanne Lagano sold 326 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, March 10th. The shares were sold at an average price of $170.00, for a total value of $55,420.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 15,781 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,682,770. The trade was a 2.02 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last quarter, insiders sold 1,862 shares of company stock worth $312,254. 0.16% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Zoetis Trading Down 1.2 %

Shares of Zoetis stock opened at $163.03 on Friday. Zoetis Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $144.80 and a fifty-two week high of $200.33. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.09, a quick ratio of 1.08 and a current ratio of 1.75. The company has a market capitalization of $73.00 billion, a P/E ratio of 29.80, a P/E/G ratio of 2.78 and a beta of 0.94. The company has a fifty day moving average of $166.40 and a 200 day moving average of $174.55.

Zoetis (NYSE:ZTS) last released 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. The firm had revenue of $2.32 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.30 billion. Zoetis had a return on equity of 53.82% and a net margin of 26.86%. On average, sell-side analysts anticipate that Zoetis Inc. will post 6.07 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Zoetis Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, June 3rd. Stockholders of record on Monday, April 21st will be issued a $0.50 dividend. This represents a $2.00 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.23%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, April 21st. Zoetis’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 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.