Independent Advisor Alliance Has $1.18 Million Position in Zoetis Inc. (NYSE:ZTS)

Independent Advisor Alliance grew its holdings in Zoetis Inc. (NYSE:ZTS) by 25.7% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 7,211 shares of the company’s stock after buying an additional 1,475 shares during the quarter. Independent Advisor Alliance’s holdings in Zoetis were worth $1,175,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in ZTS. 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 purchasing an additional 140 shares in the last quarter. Darwin Wealth Management LLC bought a new stake in shares of Zoetis in the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $31,000. Dunhill Financial LLC raised its holdings in shares of Zoetis by 80.6% in the 3rd quarter. Dunhill Financial LLC now owns 168 shares of the company’s stock worth $33,000 after buying an additional 75 shares in the last quarter. Asset Planning Inc bought a new position in shares of Zoetis during the 4th quarter worth approximately $58,000. Finally, Quarry LP lifted its position in shares of Zoetis by 45.9% during the 3rd quarter. Quarry LP now owns 305 shares of the company’s stock worth $60,000 after buying an additional 96 shares during the period. 92.80% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Zoetis Stock Performance

Shares of Zoetis stock opened at $161.33 on Friday. 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 $144.80 and a 52 week high of $200.33. The stock has a market capitalization of $72.24 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 29.49, a PEG ratio of 2.78 and a beta of 0.94. The firm has a fifty day moving average of $166.82 and a two-hundred day moving average of $176.19.

Zoetis (NYSE:ZTS) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, February 13th. The company reported $1.40 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.37 by $0.03. Zoetis had a return on equity of 53.82% and a net margin of 26.86%. The business had revenue of $2.32 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.30 billion. As a group, equities research analysts predict that Zoetis Inc. will post 6.07 EPS for the current 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 paid a dividend of $0.50 per share. The ex-dividend date is Monday, April 21st. This represents a $2.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.24%. Zoetis’s payout ratio is 36.56%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

ZTS has been the topic of a number of analyst reports. Stifel Nicolaus lowered their price target on Zoetis from $210.00 to $180.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, January 7th. Leerink Partners started coverage on shares of Zoetis in a report on Monday, December 2nd. They issued an “outperform” rating and a $215.00 target price on the stock. UBS Group initiated coverage on shares of Zoetis in a report on Monday, December 9th. They set a “neutral” rating and a $196.00 price target for the company. Barclays upped their price objective on shares of Zoetis from $242.00 to $244.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday, February 14th. Finally, Leerink Partnrs upgraded Zoetis to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Monday, December 2nd. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating, ten have assigned a buy rating and two have given a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Buy” and an average target price of $215.90.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, EVP Roxanne Lagano sold 326 shares of the stock in a transaction on 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 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 legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, Director Willie M. Reed sold 1,210 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, March 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $166.14, for a total transaction of $201,029.40. Following the sale, the director now owns 11,245 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,868,244.30. The trade was a 9.71 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last three months, insiders have sold 1,862 shares of company stock worth $312,254. Company insiders own 0.16% of the company’s stock.

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.