514,200 Shares in Zoetis Inc. (NYSE:ZTS) Bought by Alecta Tjanstepension Omsesidigt

Alecta Tjanstepension Omsesidigt purchased a new stake in Zoetis Inc. (NYSE:ZTS) in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund purchased 514,200 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $83,835,000. Alecta Tjanstepension Omsesidigt owned approximately 0.11% of Zoetis at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in ZTS. Darwin Wealth Management LLC bought a new stake in Zoetis in the 3rd quarter valued at about $31,000. First Personal Financial Services bought a new stake in shares of Zoetis during the third quarter valued at approximately $33,000. Capital Performance Advisors LLP acquired a new position in shares of Zoetis during the third quarter worth approximately $33,000. Dunhill Financial LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Zoetis by 80.6% in the 3rd quarter. Dunhill Financial LLC now owns 168 shares of the company’s stock worth $33,000 after purchasing an additional 75 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Atlantic Edge Private Wealth Management LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Zoetis by 482.8% in the 4th quarter. Atlantic Edge Private Wealth Management LLC now owns 169 shares of the company’s stock worth $28,000 after purchasing an additional 140 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 92.80% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research analysts have weighed in on ZTS shares. Barclays upped their price objective on shares of Zoetis from $242.00 to $244.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, February 14th. Stifel Nicolaus dropped 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. Leerink Partnrs raised Zoetis to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Monday, December 2nd. Leerink Partners initiated coverage on Zoetis in a report on Monday, December 2nd. They issued an “outperform” rating and a $215.00 target price on the stock. Finally, UBS Group initiated coverage on Zoetis in a research report on Monday, December 9th. They set a “neutral” rating and a $196.00 target price on the stock. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, nine have given a buy rating and two have issued a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Buy” and a consensus price target of $215.40.

Insider Buying and Selling at Zoetis

In other news, EVP Roxanne Lagano sold 326 shares of the stock in a transaction on Tuesday, February 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $171.18, for a total transaction of $55,804.68. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 16,107 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,757,196.26. This represents a 1.98 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Corporate insiders own 0.16% of the company’s stock.

Zoetis Trading Down 2.1 %

NYSE ZTS opened at $164.99 on Thursday. The stock has a market capitalization of $73.88 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 30.16, a PEG ratio of 2.78 and a beta of 0.90. The business’s fifty day moving average is $166.22 and its 200-day moving average is $177.58. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.09, a current ratio of 1.75 and a quick ratio of 1.08. Zoetis Inc. has a one year low of $144.80 and a one year high of $200.53.

Zoetis (NYSE:ZTS) last released its earnings results on Thursday, February 13th. The company reported $1.40 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.37 by $0.03. Zoetis had a net margin of 26.86% and a return on equity of 53.82%. The firm had revenue of $2.32 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $2.30 billion. Equities research analysts predict that Zoetis Inc. will post 6.07 EPS for the current year.

Zoetis Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, June 3rd. Shareholders of record on Monday, April 21st will be given a $0.50 dividend. This represents a $2.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.21%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, April 21st. Zoetis’s dividend payout ratio is currently 36.56%.

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.