Zoetis Inc. (NYSE:ZTS) Shares Purchased by Scholtz & Company LLC

Scholtz & Company LLC raised its holdings in Zoetis Inc. (NYSE:ZTS) by 1.6% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 23,481 shares of the company’s stock after buying an additional 363 shares during the period. Zoetis comprises about 1.8% of Scholtz & Company LLC’s holdings, making the stock its 21st largest position. Scholtz & Company LLC’s holdings in Zoetis were worth $3,826,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Howard Capital Management Group LLC raised its holdings in Zoetis by 0.8% during the third quarter. Howard Capital Management Group LLC now owns 104,866 shares of the company’s stock worth $20,489,000 after purchasing an additional 883 shares in the last quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. grew its position in shares of Zoetis by 17.3% in the 3rd quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 2,377,403 shares of the company’s stock valued at $464,497,000 after buying an additional 351,372 shares during the last quarter. Caisse DE Depot ET Placement DU Quebec lifted its position in Zoetis by 5.1% in the third quarter. Caisse DE Depot ET Placement DU Quebec now owns 2,051 shares of the company’s stock valued at $401,000 after acquiring an additional 100 shares during the last quarter. Edgestream Partners L.P. purchased a new stake in Zoetis in the third quarter valued at $2,078,000. Finally, Investment Management Corp of Ontario boosted its stake in Zoetis by 176.9% in the third quarter. Investment Management Corp of Ontario now owns 40,589 shares of the company’s stock valued at $7,930,000 after acquiring an additional 25,931 shares in the last quarter. 92.80% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Ratings Changes

ZTS has been the subject of several research reports. Morgan Stanley reduced their target price on Zoetis from $243.00 to $238.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Friday, February 14th. Piper Sandler increased their price objective on Zoetis from $200.00 to $205.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Thursday, February 27th. Stifel Nicolaus cut their target price on shares of Zoetis from $210.00 to $180.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, January 7th. StockNews.com upgraded shares of Zoetis from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, March 7th. Finally, Barclays lifted their price objective on shares of Zoetis from $242.00 to $244.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday, February 14th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating, ten have issued a buy rating and two have assigned a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Buy” and an average price target of $215.90.

Zoetis Trading Down 1.7 %

Shares of ZTS opened at $161.77 on Wednesday. The firm’s 50-day moving average is $166.26 and its two-hundred day moving average is $174.05. Zoetis Inc. has a twelve month low of $144.80 and a twelve month high of $200.33. The company has a current ratio of 1.75, a quick ratio of 1.08 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.09. The firm has a market capitalization of $72.44 billion, a P/E ratio of 29.57, a PEG ratio of 2.78 and a beta of 0.94.

Zoetis (NYSE:ZTS) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, February 13th. The company reported $1.40 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.37 by $0.03. Zoetis had a net margin of 26.86% and a return on equity of 53.82%. The company had revenue of $2.32 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.30 billion. On average, research analysts predict that Zoetis Inc. will post 6.07 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Zoetis Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, June 3rd. Stockholders of record on Monday, April 21st will be issued a dividend of $0.50 per share. The ex-dividend date is Monday, April 21st. This represents a $2.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.24%. Zoetis’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 36.56%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Zoetis

In related news, Director Willie M. Reed sold 1,210 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred 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 transaction, the director now owns 11,245 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,868,244.30. This trade represents a 9.71 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, EVP Roxanne Lagano sold 326 shares of Zoetis stock in a transaction on Tuesday, February 11th. The shares were 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 in the company, valued at $2,757,196.26. The trade was a 1.98 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last three months, insiders sold 1,862 shares of company stock worth $312,254. Insiders own 0.16% of the company’s stock.

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.