Los Angeles Capital Management LLC Trims Stock Holdings in Zoetis Inc. (NYSE:ZTS)

Los Angeles Capital Management LLC reduced its position in Zoetis Inc. (NYSE:ZTS) by 33.8% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 269,606 shares of the company’s stock after selling 137,536 shares during the quarter. Los Angeles Capital Management LLC owned about 0.06% of Zoetis worth $43,927,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds have also modified their holdings of the business. AMF Tjanstepension AB increased its stake in Zoetis by 23.4% in the third quarter. AMF Tjanstepension AB now owns 105,376 shares of the company’s stock valued at $20,594,000 after purchasing an additional 20,001 shares during the period. Howard Capital Management Group LLC grew its holdings in shares of Zoetis by 0.8% during the third quarter. Howard Capital Management Group LLC now owns 104,866 shares of the company’s stock worth $20,489,000 after buying an additional 883 shares during the last quarter. Arkadios Wealth Advisors increased its position in Zoetis by 2.5% in the 3rd quarter. Arkadios Wealth Advisors now owns 5,045 shares of the company’s stock valued at $986,000 after acquiring an additional 121 shares during the period. Pallas Capital Advisors LLC raised its stake in Zoetis by 6.0% during the 3rd quarter. Pallas Capital Advisors LLC now owns 7,934 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,440,000 after acquiring an additional 451 shares during the last quarter. Finally, SFE Investment Counsel raised its stake in Zoetis by 1.9% during the 3rd quarter. SFE Investment Counsel now owns 27,461 shares of the company’s stock valued at $5,365,000 after acquiring an additional 514 shares during the last quarter. 92.80% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

ZTS has been the topic of a number of recent research reports. 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. Piper Sandler dropped their price objective on shares of Zoetis from $210.00 to $200.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, February 10th. Leerink Partnrs upgraded shares of Zoetis to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Monday, December 2nd. Morgan Stanley lowered 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. Finally, Barclays increased their price target on shares of Zoetis from $242.00 to $244.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, February 14th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, nine have assigned a buy rating and two have given a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Buy” and an average price target of $215.40.

Insider Transactions at Zoetis

In other Zoetis news, EVP Roxanne Lagano sold 326 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, February 11th. The shares were 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 directly owns 16,107 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,757,196.26. This trade represents a 1.98 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Corporate insiders own 0.16% of the company’s stock.

Zoetis Trading Up 2.0 %

Shares of ZTS opened at $168.60 on Wednesday. Zoetis Inc. has a twelve month low of $144.80 and a twelve month high of $200.53. 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 firm has a market capitalization of $75.50 billion, a P/E ratio of 30.82, a PEG ratio of 2.78 and a beta of 0.90. The firm’s 50-day moving average is $166.26 and its two-hundred day moving average is $177.66.

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 analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.37 by $0.03. The business 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%. On average, research analysts predict that Zoetis Inc. will post 6.07 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Zoetis Dividend Announcement

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 given a $0.50 dividend. This represents a $2.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.19%. 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.