Morgan Stanley Lowers Zoetis (NYSE:ZTS) Price Target to $243.00

Zoetis (NYSE:ZTS) had its price objective lowered by Morgan Stanley from $248.00 to $243.00 in a research note issued to investors on Wednesday morning,Benzinga reports. Morgan Stanley currently has an overweight rating on the stock.

Other research analysts also recently issued research reports about the company. Leerink Partners assumed coverage on Zoetis in a report on Monday, December 2nd. They issued an “outperform” rating and a $215.00 price target for the company. Leerink Partnrs raised shares of Zoetis to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Monday, December 2nd. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their price objective on shares of Zoetis from $225.00 to $230.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday, October 11th. UBS Group started coverage on shares of Zoetis in a research report on Monday, December 9th. They issued a “neutral” rating and a $196.00 target price for the company. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus reduced their price target on shares of Zoetis from $210.00 to $180.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, January 7th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating, ten have given a buy rating and two have given a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Buy” and an average target price of $215.00.

Zoetis Stock Down 0.1 %

NYSE ZTS opened at $170.33 on Wednesday. The company has a quick ratio of 2.27, a current ratio of 3.69 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.26. Zoetis has a fifty-two week low of $144.80 and a fifty-two week high of $200.53. The business has a 50 day moving average price of $169.93 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $179.65. The stock has a market cap of $76.85 billion, a PE 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 for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.46 by $0.12. Zoetis had a net margin of 26.55% and a return on equity of 51.98%. The business had revenue of $2.40 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.29 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $1.36 earnings per share. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 11.6% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, sell-side analysts predict that Zoetis will post 5.9 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Zoetis Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, March 4th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, January 21st will be given a dividend of $0.50 per share. This represents a $2.00 dividend on an annualized basis 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 presently 37.59%.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Atlantic Edge Private Wealth Management LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Zoetis by 482.8% during the fourth 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 stake in Zoetis in the 3rd quarter valued at about $31,000. First Personal Financial Services acquired a new position in Zoetis during the 3rd quarter valued at about $33,000. Capital Performance Advisors LLP bought a new position in Zoetis in the 3rd quarter worth about $33,000. Finally, Dunhill Financial LLC increased its stake in shares of Zoetis by 80.6% in the third quarter. Dunhill Financial LLC now owns 168 shares of the company’s stock valued at $33,000 after purchasing an additional 75 shares during the period. 92.80% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

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.