Canada Pension Plan Investment Board Grows Stock Position in Zoetis Inc. (NYSE:ZTS)

Canada Pension Plan Investment Board grew its position in shares of Zoetis Inc. (NYSE:ZTS) by 2.2% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 734,744 shares of the company’s stock after buying an additional 16,107 shares during the period. Canada Pension Plan Investment Board owned 0.16% of Zoetis worth $119,712,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Howard Capital Management Group LLC increased its stake in shares of Zoetis by 0.8% in the third quarter. Howard Capital Management Group LLC now owns 104,866 shares of the company’s stock worth $20,489,000 after purchasing an additional 883 shares in the last quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. boosted its holdings in Zoetis by 17.3% in the 3rd quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 2,377,403 shares of the company’s stock worth $464,497,000 after buying an additional 351,372 shares during the period. Diamant Asset Management Inc. grew its stake in Zoetis by 2.4% in the 3rd quarter. Diamant Asset Management Inc. now owns 4,465 shares of the company’s stock valued at $872,000 after buying an additional 105 shares in the last quarter. World Investment Advisors LLC raised its holdings in Zoetis by 29.1% during the 3rd quarter. World Investment Advisors LLC now owns 34,236 shares of the company’s stock valued at $6,689,000 after acquiring an additional 7,709 shares during the period. Finally, Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB lifted its position in shares of Zoetis by 801.0% during the third quarter. Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB now owns 18,606 shares of the company’s stock worth $3,635,000 after acquiring an additional 16,541 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 92.80% of the company’s stock.

Insider Transactions at Zoetis

In other news, EVP Roxanne Lagano sold 326 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, March 10th. The shares were sold at an average price of $170.00, for a total transaction of $55,420.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 15,781 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,682,770. This represents a 2.02 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, Director Willie M. Reed sold 1,210 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, March 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $166.14, for a total value of $201,029.40. Following the completion of the sale, the director now owns 11,245 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,868,244.30. This trade represents a 9.71 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last quarter, insiders have sold 1,862 shares of company stock worth $312,254. Company insiders own 0.16% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of analysts recently issued reports on ZTS shares. Morgan Stanley decreased their price objective on Zoetis from $243.00 to $238.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, February 14th. Piper Sandler upped their price target on Zoetis from $200.00 to $205.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Thursday, February 27th. StockNews.com raised shares of Zoetis from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, March 7th. Barclays boosted their price objective on shares of Zoetis from $242.00 to $244.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday, February 14th. Finally, 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. 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. Based on data from MarketBeat, Zoetis presently has a consensus rating of “Buy” and an average target price of $214.40.

Zoetis Stock Up 1.3 %

Shares of NYSE:ZTS opened at $148.64 on Friday. The firm has a market capitalization of $66.32 billion, a PE ratio of 27.17, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.78 and a beta of 0.92. 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 Inc. has a 52-week low of $139.70 and a 52-week high of $200.33. The firm has a fifty day moving average of $160.55 and a 200 day moving average of $170.28.

Zoetis (NYSE:ZTS) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, February 13th. The company reported $1.40 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.37 by $0.03. The firm had revenue of $2.32 billion during 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, research analysts anticipate that Zoetis Inc. will post 6.07 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Zoetis Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, June 3rd. Investors 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 1.35%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, April 21st. Zoetis’s payout ratio is presently 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.