Teachers Retirement System of The State of Kentucky Has $5.46 Million Stock Position in Zoetis Inc. (NYSE:ZTS)

Teachers Retirement System of The State of Kentucky decreased its holdings in Zoetis Inc. (NYSE:ZTS) by 1.9% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 33,511 shares of the company’s stock after selling 656 shares during the quarter. Teachers Retirement System of The State of Kentucky’s holdings in Zoetis were worth $5,460,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Tower Research Capital LLC TRC grew its holdings in Zoetis by 103.2% during the fourth quarter. Tower Research Capital LLC TRC now owns 23,979 shares of the company’s stock worth $3,907,000 after buying an additional 12,178 shares in the last quarter. Mirova grew its stake in shares of Zoetis by 76.1% in the 4th quarter. Mirova now owns 31,570 shares of the company’s stock worth $5,144,000 after acquiring an additional 13,641 shares in the last quarter. MetLife Investment Management LLC raised its holdings in shares of Zoetis by 0.8% in the fourth quarter. MetLife Investment Management LLC now owns 136,156 shares of the company’s stock valued at $22,184,000 after purchasing an additional 1,091 shares during the last quarter. Natixis lifted its position in shares of Zoetis by 76.4% during the fourth quarter. Natixis now owns 59,681 shares of the company’s stock valued at $9,724,000 after purchasing an additional 25,856 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Norinchukin Bank The boosted its holdings in Zoetis by 9.0% during the fourth quarter. Norinchukin Bank The now owns 212,587 shares of the company’s stock worth $34,637,000 after purchasing an additional 17,574 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 92.80% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities analysts have commented on the stock. Stifel Nicolaus dropped their target price on shares of Zoetis from $180.00 to $165.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, April 14th. Morgan Stanley cut their price objective on Zoetis from $243.00 to $238.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, February 14th. StockNews.com raised Zoetis from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, March 7th. Barclays boosted 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. Finally, Piper Sandler raised their price objective on shares of Zoetis from $200.00 to $205.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Thursday, February 27th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating, ten have issued a buy rating and two have assigned a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of “Buy” and a consensus price target of $214.40.

Zoetis Stock Performance

NYSE ZTS opened at $150.17 on Wednesday. The firm has a market cap of $67.00 billion, a P/E ratio of 27.45, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.78 and a beta of 0.92. The company has a quick ratio of 1.08, a current ratio of 1.75 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.09. The company’s 50 day moving average is $159.19 and its 200-day moving average is $169.22. Zoetis Inc. has a 12-month low of $139.70 and a 12-month high of $200.33.

Zoetis (NYSE:ZTS) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, February 13th. The company reported $1.40 earnings per share (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 firm had revenue of $2.32 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.30 billion. Sell-side analysts predict that Zoetis Inc. will post 6.07 earnings per share for the current year.

Zoetis Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed 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. The ex-dividend date is Monday, April 21st. This represents a $2.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.33%. Zoetis’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 36.56%.

Insider Activity at Zoetis

In related news, EVP Roxanne Lagano sold 326 shares of Zoetis stock in a transaction on Monday, March 10th. The stock was sold at an average price of $170.00, for a total transaction of $55,420.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now owns 15,781 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,682,770. This trade represents a 2.02 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, Director Willie M. Reed sold 1,210 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated 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 transaction, the director now owns 11,245 shares in the company, valued at $1,868,244.30. This represents a 9.71 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last 90 days, insiders sold 1,862 shares of company stock valued at $312,254. Corporate 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.