Zoetis Inc. (NYSE:ZTS) Shares Purchased by Stonegate Investment Group LLC

Stonegate Investment Group LLC lifted its holdings in Zoetis Inc. (NYSE:ZTS) by 7.2% in the 4th quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The fund owned 2,721 shares of the company’s stock after buying an additional 182 shares during the quarter. Stonegate Investment Group LLC’s holdings in Zoetis were worth $443,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in ZTS. Darwin Wealth Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of Zoetis in the third quarter worth about $31,000. Capital Performance Advisors LLP purchased a new stake in Zoetis during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $33,000. First Personal Financial Services acquired a new position in shares of Zoetis in the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $33,000. Dunhill Financial LLC boosted its stake in shares of Zoetis by 80.6% during the 3rd quarter. Dunhill Financial LLC now owns 168 shares of the company’s stock valued at $33,000 after buying an additional 75 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Quarry LP grew its position in shares of Zoetis by 273.2% during the second quarter. Quarry LP now owns 209 shares of the company’s stock worth $36,000 after buying an additional 153 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 92.80% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities research analysts have recently issued reports on ZTS shares. UBS Group started coverage on shares of Zoetis in a research note on Monday, December 9th. They issued a “neutral” rating and a $196.00 target price on the stock. Leerink Partnrs upgraded Zoetis to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Monday, December 2nd. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their target price on Zoetis from $225.00 to $230.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday, October 11th. Leerink Partners began coverage on Zoetis in a research report on Monday, December 2nd. They set an “outperform” rating and a $215.00 price target on the stock. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus decreased their price objective on shares of Zoetis from $210.00 to $180.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, January 7th. One analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating, nine have given a buy rating and two have assigned a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Buy” and an average price target of $211.89.

Zoetis Stock Down 1.6 %

Zoetis stock opened at $170.32 on Wednesday. The company has a current ratio of 3.69, a quick ratio of 2.27 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.26. Zoetis Inc. has a 1-year low of $144.80 and a 1-year high of $200.53. The firm’s fifty day simple moving average is $170.04 and its 200-day simple moving average is $179.71. The company has a market capitalization of $76.84 billion, a P/E ratio of 32.02, a P/E/G ratio of 2.57 and a beta of 0.89.

Zoetis (NYSE:ZTS) last announced its earnings results on Monday, November 4th. The company reported $1.58 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.46 by $0.12. Zoetis had a return on equity of 51.98% and a net margin of 26.55%. The firm had revenue of $2.40 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $2.29 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned $1.36 earnings per share. The company’s revenue was up 11.6% on a year-over-year basis. Sell-side analysts forecast that Zoetis Inc. will post 5.9 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Zoetis Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, March 4th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, January 21st will be given a $0.50 dividend. This represents a $2.00 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.17%. This is a boost from Zoetis’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.43. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, January 21st. Zoetis’s dividend payout ratio is currently 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.