Van Lanschot Kempen Investment Management N.V. Grows Stake in Zoetis Inc. (NYSE:ZTS)

Van Lanschot Kempen Investment Management N.V. lifted its stake in Zoetis Inc. (NYSE:ZTS) by 48.7% in the 4th quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The firm owned 169,939 shares of the company’s stock after buying an additional 55,621 shares during the quarter. Van Lanschot Kempen Investment Management N.V.’s holdings in Zoetis were worth $27,688,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of ZTS. Vanguard Group Inc. raised its holdings in Zoetis by 0.3% in the fourth quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 41,366,877 shares of the company’s stock worth $6,739,905,000 after buying an additional 120,158 shares during the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC raised its holdings in Zoetis by 1.8% in the 4th quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 10,617,897 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,726,075,000 after acquiring an additional 190,137 shares during the last quarter. Polen Capital Management LLC lifted its position in Zoetis by 17.5% in the 4th quarter. Polen Capital Management LLC now owns 7,483,194 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,219,237,000 after acquiring an additional 1,116,541 shares in the last quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP boosted its stake in Zoetis by 78.5% during the 4th quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 6,958,543 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,133,755,000 after purchasing an additional 3,059,255 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Bank of New York Mellon Corp increased its holdings in shares of Zoetis by 8.5% in the 4th quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 5,561,910 shares of the company’s stock worth $906,202,000 after purchasing an additional 433,429 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 92.80% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research analysts have recently issued reports on ZTS shares. StockNews.com raised Zoetis from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, March 7th. Stifel Nicolaus lowered their target price on shares of Zoetis from $180.00 to $165.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, April 14th. Barclays lifted their price target on shares of Zoetis from $242.00 to $244.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday, February 14th. Piper Sandler increased their price objective on shares of Zoetis from $200.00 to $205.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Thursday, February 27th. Finally, Morgan Stanley dropped their target price on shares of Zoetis from $243.00 to $238.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, February 14th. One analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating, ten have given a buy rating and two have issued a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Buy” and a consensus price target of $214.40.

Zoetis Stock Up 1.3 %

ZTS opened at $148.64 on Monday. The firm’s 50 day simple moving average is $160.04 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $169.66. The company has a market capitalization of $66.32 billion, a PE ratio of 27.17, a PEG ratio of 2.78 and a beta of 0.92. Zoetis Inc. has a 1-year low of $139.70 and a 1-year high of $200.33. The company has a current ratio of 1.75, a quick ratio of 1.08 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.09.

Zoetis (NYSE:ZTS) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, February 13th. The company reported $1.40 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates 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%. As a group, equities analysts forecast that Zoetis Inc. will post 6.07 EPS for the current year.

Zoetis Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, June 3rd. Investors of record on Monday, April 21st will be paid a dividend of $0.50 per share. The ex-dividend date is Monday, April 21st. This represents a $2.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.35%. Zoetis’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 36.56%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, EVP Roxanne Lagano sold 326 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated 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 in the company, valued at $2,757,196.26. The trade was a 1.98 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, Director Willie M. Reed sold 1,210 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, March 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $166.14, for a total value of $201,029.40. Following the sale, the director now owns 11,245 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,868,244.30. This represents a 9.71 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last ninety days, insiders sold 1,862 shares of company stock valued at $312,254. 0.16% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

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.