Zoetis Inc. (NYSE:ZTS) Shares Sold by James Investment Research Inc.

James Investment Research Inc. decreased its position in shares of Zoetis Inc. (NYSE:ZTS) by 17.5% in the 4th quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The fund owned 16,756 shares of the company’s stock after selling 3,543 shares during the quarter. James Investment Research Inc.’s holdings in Zoetis were worth $2,730,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of the company. Atlantic Edge Private Wealth Management LLC raised its position in Zoetis by 482.8% in the fourth quarter. Atlantic Edge Private Wealth Management LLC now owns 169 shares of the company’s stock worth $28,000 after acquiring an additional 140 shares in the last quarter. Darwin Wealth Management LLC acquired a new stake in Zoetis during the 3rd quarter worth about $31,000. First Personal Financial Services acquired a new stake in Zoetis during the 3rd quarter worth about $33,000. Capital Performance Advisors LLP acquired a new stake in Zoetis during the 3rd quarter worth about $33,000. Finally, Dunhill Financial LLC raised its holdings in Zoetis by 80.6% during the 3rd quarter. Dunhill Financial LLC now owns 168 shares of the company’s stock worth $33,000 after buying an additional 75 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 92.80% of the company’s stock.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Zoetis news, EVP Roxanne Lagano sold 326 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred 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 sale, the executive vice president now owns 16,107 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,757,196.26. This represents a 1.98 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Company insiders own 0.16% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research firms have issued reports on ZTS. Barclays boosted their price objective on Zoetis from $242.00 to $244.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday. UBS Group initiated coverage on Zoetis in a report on Monday, December 9th. They set a “neutral” rating and a $196.00 price objective on the stock. Stifel Nicolaus lowered their target price on Zoetis from $210.00 to $180.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, January 7th. Piper Sandler lowered their target price on Zoetis from $210.00 to $200.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, February 10th. Finally, Leerink Partnrs raised Zoetis to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Monday, December 2nd. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating, ten have issued a buy rating and two have issued a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Buy” and a consensus price target of $214.90.

Zoetis Trading Down 4.5 %

Shares of NYSE ZTS opened at $157.54 on Friday. The stock has a market cap of $71.08 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 29.61, a PEG ratio of 2.77 and a beta of 0.90. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.26, a quick ratio of 2.27 and a current ratio of 3.69. The business has a 50 day simple moving average of $168.51 and a 200 day simple moving average of $178.81. Zoetis Inc. has a 52 week low of $144.80 and a 52 week high of $200.53.

Zoetis (NYSE:ZTS) last announced its earnings results 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 51.98% and a net margin of 26.55%. On average, research analysts predict that Zoetis Inc. will post 5.9 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Zoetis Announces Dividend

The business 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 dividend of $0.50 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, April 21st. This represents a $2.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.27%. Zoetis’s payout ratio is currently 37.59%.

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.