Ascent Wealth Partners LLC Has $1.75 Million Stock Position in Zoetis Inc. (NYSE:ZTS)

Ascent Wealth Partners LLC lowered its position in shares of Zoetis Inc. (NYSE:ZTS) by 1.0% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 10,709 shares of the company’s stock after selling 103 shares during the quarter. Ascent Wealth Partners LLC’s holdings in Zoetis were worth $1,745,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of the company. Atlantic Edge Private Wealth Management LLC lifted 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 worth $28,000 after buying an additional 140 shares in the last quarter. Darwin Wealth Management LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Zoetis during the third quarter worth $31,000. First Personal Financial Services acquired a new position in Zoetis in the third quarter valued at about $33,000. Capital Performance Advisors LLP acquired a new position in Zoetis in the third quarter valued at about $33,000. Finally, Dunhill Financial LLC raised its stake in 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 in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 92.80% of the company’s stock.

Zoetis Stock Performance

NYSE:ZTS opened at $160.39 on Friday. The stock has a market cap of $71.82 billion, a P/E ratio of 29.32, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.78 and a beta of 0.90. 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 stock’s 50-day moving average is $166.51 and its 200-day moving average is $177.99. Zoetis Inc. has a 1-year low of $144.80 and a 1-year high of $200.53.

Zoetis (NYSE:ZTS) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, February 13th. The company reported $1.40 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.37 by $0.03. The company had revenue of $2.32 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $2.30 billion. Zoetis had a return on equity of 53.82% and a net margin of 26.86%. Equities research analysts anticipate that Zoetis Inc. will post 6.07 earnings per share for the current 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. This represents a $2.00 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.25%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, April 21st. Zoetis’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 36.56%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research analysts recently commented on ZTS shares. Barclays boosted their price target on Zoetis from $242.00 to $244.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday, February 14th. Piper Sandler dropped their price target on Zoetis from $210.00 to $200.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Monday, February 10th. Stifel Nicolaus dropped their price target on Zoetis from $210.00 to $180.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, January 7th. Morgan Stanley dropped their price target on Zoetis from $243.00 to $238.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, February 14th. Finally, Leerink Partners initiated coverage on Zoetis in a research note on Monday, December 2nd. They issued an “outperform” rating and a $215.00 price target for the company. One research analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating, nine have issued a buy rating and two have issued a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Buy” and an average price target of $215.40.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, EVP Roxanne Lagano sold 326 shares of Zoetis stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, February 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $171.18, for a total value of $55,804.68. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 16,107 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,757,196.26. The trade was a 1.98 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. 0.16% of the stock is owned by insiders.

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.