Procyon Advisors LLC Boosts Stock Position in Zoetis Inc. (NYSE:ZTS)

Procyon Advisors LLC raised its stake in Zoetis Inc. (NYSE:ZTS) by 3.3% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 4,512 shares of the company’s stock after purchasing an additional 145 shares during the period. Procyon Advisors LLC’s holdings in Zoetis were worth $891,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in ZTS. Norges Bank purchased a new position in Zoetis during the 4th quarter worth approximately $745,861,000. Morgan Stanley boosted its stake in shares of Zoetis by 34.6% in the fourth quarter. Morgan Stanley now owns 10,872,704 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,593,395,000 after buying an additional 2,796,694 shares in the last quarter. Moneta Group Investment Advisors LLC raised its holdings in Zoetis by 124,281.9% during the fourth quarter. Moneta Group Investment Advisors LLC now owns 2,332,160 shares of the company’s stock worth $341,778,000 after purchasing an additional 2,330,285 shares during the last quarter. Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership raised its holdings in Zoetis by 171.7% during the first quarter. Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership now owns 3,326,448 shares of the company’s stock worth $627,335,000 after purchasing an additional 2,102,306 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Vaughan Nelson Investment Management L.P. acquired a new position in shares of Zoetis in the third quarter worth $176,219,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 92.80% of the company’s stock.

Zoetis Stock Performance

ZTS stock traded up $0.57 on Thursday, reaching $169.08. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 297,821 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,687,886. Zoetis Inc. has a 52 week low of $151.03 and a 52 week high of $201.92. The company has a market capitalization of $77.42 billion, a P/E ratio of 33.24, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.53 and a beta of 0.87. The firm has a fifty day moving average of $186.36 and a two-hundred day moving average of $182.34. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.32, a current ratio of 3.36 and a quick ratio of 2.00.

Zoetis (NYSE:ZTS) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, February 13th. The company reported $1.24 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.32 by ($0.08). Zoetis had a net margin of 27.43% and a return on equity of 51.25%. The company had revenue of $2.21 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.19 billion. During the same quarter last year, the company posted $1.15 EPS. Zoetis’s revenue was up 8.5% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, analysts predict that Zoetis Inc. will post 5.8 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Zoetis Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, June 4th. Investors of record on Friday, April 19th will be issued a dividend of $0.432 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, April 18th. This represents a $1.73 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.02%. Zoetis’s dividend payout ratio is 34.12%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research firms have recently weighed in on ZTS. Barclays boosted their price target on Zoetis from $255.00 to $260.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Wednesday, February 14th. Stifel Nicolaus boosted their price target on Zoetis from $195.00 to $215.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, January 12th. The Goldman Sachs Group upped their target price on Zoetis from $190.00 to $226.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, January 17th. BNP Paribas assumed coverage on Zoetis in a research report on Thursday, December 7th. They issued an “outperform” rating and a $237.00 target price for the company. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group reaffirmed a “buy” rating and issued a $230.00 target price on shares of Zoetis in a research report on Tuesday, December 19th. Nine investment analysts have rated the stock with a buy rating, Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Buy” and a consensus target price of $224.33.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, EVP Roxanne Lagano sold 363 shares of the stock in a transaction on Monday, February 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $197.74, for a total transaction of $71,779.62. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 20,417 shares in the company, valued at $4,037,257.58. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Over the last ninety days, insiders sold 2,209 shares of company stock worth $408,453. Corporate insiders own 0.12% of the company’s stock.

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.