Federated Hermes Inc. Sells 43,105 Shares of Zoetis Inc. (NYSE:ZTS)

Federated Hermes Inc. lessened its stake in shares of Zoetis Inc. (NYSE:ZTS) by 6.8% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 587,785 shares of the company’s stock after selling 43,105 shares during the quarter. Federated Hermes Inc. owned approximately 0.13% of Zoetis worth $116,011,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of the stock. Wellington Management Group LLP boosted its position in Zoetis by 2.5% during the 3rd quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 12,344,692 shares of the company’s stock valued at $2,147,730,000 after acquiring an additional 297,044 shares in the last quarter. Morgan Stanley boosted its position in Zoetis by 34.6% during the 4th quarter. Morgan Stanley now owns 10,872,704 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,593,395,000 after acquiring an additional 2,796,694 shares in the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC boosted its position in Zoetis by 0.3% during the 1st quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 9,739,370 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,617,464,000 after acquiring an additional 27,097 shares in the last quarter. Northern Trust Corp boosted its position in Zoetis by 3.3% during the 3rd quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 6,143,258 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,068,804,000 after acquiring an additional 196,771 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Norges Bank purchased a new stake in shares of Zoetis during the 4th quarter valued at $745,861,000. Institutional investors own 92.80% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several analysts have recently commented on ZTS shares. StockNews.com lowered Zoetis from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, February 20th. The Goldman Sachs Group increased their price objective on Zoetis from $190.00 to $226.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, January 17th. Stifel Nicolaus decreased their price objective on Zoetis from $215.00 to $195.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, April 2nd. Barclays increased their price objective on Zoetis from $255.00 to $260.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Wednesday, February 14th. Finally, Piper Sandler reiterated an “overweight” rating and set a $195.00 price objective (down previously from $220.00) on shares of Zoetis in a report on Tuesday. Eight equities research analysts have rated the stock with a buy rating, According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Buy” and an average price target of $221.75.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Zoetis news, EVP Roxanne Lagano sold 923 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, March 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $173.33, for a total transaction of $159,983.59. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 15,723 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,725,267.59. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Corporate insiders own 0.12% of the company’s stock.

Zoetis Stock Performance

ZTS stock traded up $1.54 during midday trading on Thursday, reaching $153.05. The stock had a trading volume of 1,767,187 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,947,173. The stock has a market cap of $70.00 billion, a PE ratio of 30.15, a P/E/G ratio of 2.34 and a beta of 0.85. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.32, a quick ratio of 2.00 and a current ratio of 3.36. Zoetis Inc. has a 52-week low of $148.48 and a 52-week high of $201.92. The firm has a fifty day simple moving average of $177.35 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $180.39.

Zoetis (NYSE:ZTS) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, February 13th. The company reported $1.24 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.32 by ($0.08). The company had revenue of $2.21 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.19 billion. Zoetis had a net margin of 27.43% and a return on equity of 51.25%. The firm’s revenue was up 8.5% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business posted $1.15 earnings per share. As a group, equities research analysts anticipate that Zoetis Inc. will post 5.79 EPS for the current year.

Zoetis Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, June 4th. Shareholders of record on Friday, April 19th will be issued a dividend of $0.432 per share. This represents a $1.73 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.13%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, April 18th. Zoetis’s payout ratio is 34.12%.

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.