ING Groep NV Trims Position in Zoetis Inc. (NYSE:ZTS)

ING Groep NV lessened its holdings in shares of Zoetis Inc. (NYSE:ZTS) by 46.5% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 57,623 shares of the company’s stock after selling 50,068 shares during the quarter. ING Groep NV’s holdings in Zoetis were worth $9,389,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other large investors also recently made changes to their positions in the company. State Street Corp raised its position in shares of Zoetis by 0.5% in the 3rd quarter. State Street Corp now owns 19,779,344 shares of the company’s stock worth $3,864,488,000 after buying an additional 95,856 shares during the period. Geode Capital Management LLC increased its holdings in Zoetis by 1.8% in the 3rd quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 10,427,760 shares of the company’s stock valued at $2,030,813,000 after purchasing an additional 185,364 shares in the last quarter. Mizuho Securities USA LLC increased its holdings in Zoetis by 13,726.9% in the 3rd quarter. Mizuho Securities USA LLC now owns 4,865,000 shares of the company’s stock valued at $950,524,000 after purchasing an additional 4,829,815 shares in the last quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC increased its holdings in Zoetis by 5.3% in the 3rd quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC now owns 3,896,106 shares of the company’s stock valued at $761,221,000 after purchasing an additional 194,542 shares in the last quarter. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased its holdings in Zoetis by 10.6% in the 3rd quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 2,916,539 shares of the company’s stock valued at $569,834,000 after purchasing an additional 279,092 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 92.80% of the company’s stock.

Zoetis Price Performance

Shares of ZTS opened at $160.39 on Friday. Zoetis Inc. has a 52 week low of $144.80 and a 52 week 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 cap of $71.82 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 29.32, a PEG ratio of 2.77 and a beta of 0.90. The stock has a 50 day moving average of $166.51 and a 200-day moving average of $178.04.

Zoetis (NYSE:ZTS) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, February 13th. The company reported $1.40 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 the consensus estimate of $2.30 billion. Zoetis had a net margin of 26.86% and a return on equity of 53.82%. As a group, analysts forecast that Zoetis Inc. will post 6.07 EPS for the current year.

Zoetis Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, June 3rd. Shareholders of record on Monday, April 21st will be issued a $0.50 dividend. This represents a $2.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.25%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, April 21st. Zoetis’s dividend payout ratio is presently 36.56%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

ZTS has been the subject of several recent research reports. Stifel Nicolaus lowered their price target on Zoetis from $210.00 to $180.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, January 7th. Morgan Stanley lowered their price target on Zoetis from $243.00 to $238.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Friday, February 14th. Piper Sandler lowered their price target on Zoetis from $210.00 to $200.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Monday, February 10th. UBS Group initiated coverage on Zoetis in a report on Monday, December 9th. They issued a “neutral” rating and a $196.00 price target for the company. Finally, Leerink Partners initiated coverage on Zoetis in a research note on Monday, December 2nd. They set an “outperform” rating and a $215.00 target price for the company. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating, nine have assigned a buy rating and two have assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Buy” and a consensus price target of $214.90.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Zoetis news, EVP Roxanne Lagano sold 326 shares of Zoetis stock in a transaction on Tuesday, February 11th. The shares were sold at an average price of $171.18, for a total value of $55,804.68. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 16,107 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,757,196.26. The trade was a 1.98 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this link. 0.16% of the stock is currently 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.