Union Bancaire Privee UBP SA Decreases Holdings in Zoetis Inc. (NYSE:ZTS)

Union Bancaire Privee UBP SA trimmed its holdings in shares of Zoetis Inc. (NYSE:ZTS) by 24.5% during the 1st quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 4,137 shares of the company’s stock after selling 1,340 shares during the quarter. Union Bancaire Privee UBP SA’s holdings in Zoetis were worth $671,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds have also recently made changes to their positions in ZTS. Norges Bank purchased a new stake in shares of Zoetis during the 4th quarter valued at about $824,321,000. Wellington Management Group LLP raised its position in Zoetis by 78.5% in the 4th quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 6,958,543 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,133,755,000 after purchasing an additional 3,059,255 shares during the period. Sarasin & Partners LLP purchased a new stake in Zoetis in the 1st quarter worth about $339,111,000. GAMMA Investing LLC raised its position in Zoetis by 14,731.3% in the 1st quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 1,759,285 shares of the company’s stock worth $289,666,000 after purchasing an additional 1,747,423 shares during the period. Finally, Raymond James Financial Inc. purchased a new stake in Zoetis in the 4th quarter worth about $196,651,000. 92.80% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Zoetis Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE:ZTS opened at $164.27 on Friday. The firm has a market cap of $73.13 billion, a PE ratio of 30.03, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.78 and a beta of 0.94. The firm’s 50 day simple moving average is $158.67 and its 200-day simple moving average is $164.01. Zoetis Inc. has a one year low of $139.70 and a one year high of $200.33. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.09, a quick ratio of 1.08 and a current ratio of 1.75.

Zoetis (NYSE:ZTS) last released its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, May 6th. The company reported $1.48 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.40 by $0.08. Zoetis had a net margin of 26.86% and a return on equity of 53.82%. The firm had revenue of $2.22 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.20 billion. During the same period last year, the firm earned $1.38 earnings per share. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 1.4% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, equities analysts predict that Zoetis Inc. will post 6.07 EPS for the current year.

Zoetis Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, September 3rd. Stockholders of record on Friday, July 18th will be paid a dividend of $0.50 per share. The ex-dividend date is Friday, July 18th. This represents a $2.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.22%. Zoetis’s dividend payout ratio is presently 35.91%.

Insider Activity

In other news, EVP Roxanne Lagano sold 652 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, June 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $170.00, for a total transaction of $110,840.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 15,129 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,571,930. This trade represents a 4.13% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Insiders own 0.18% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

ZTS has been the topic of a number of recent analyst reports. Piper Sandler increased their price objective on shares of Zoetis from $205.00 to $210.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Monday, May 12th. Wall Street Zen raised shares of Zoetis from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, March 7th. UBS Group reduced their price objective on shares of Zoetis from $189.00 to $170.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, May 7th. Barclays increased their price objective on shares of Zoetis from $242.00 to $244.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday, February 14th. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus reduced their target price on shares of Zoetis from $180.00 to $165.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, April 14th. One analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating, eight have given a buy rating and two have given a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Zoetis currently has a consensus rating of “Buy” and an average target price of $212.75.

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.