Fire Capital Management LLC Makes New $1.89 Million Investment in Zoetis Inc. (NYSE:ZTS)

Fire Capital Management LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Zoetis Inc. (NYSE:ZTS) during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor acquired 11,577 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,886,000. Zoetis accounts for about 1.4% of Fire Capital Management LLC’s holdings, making the stock its 18th largest holding.

Several other hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in ZTS. Atlantic Edge Private Wealth Management LLC raised its holdings in shares of Zoetis by 482.8% in the 4th 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 during the period. Rakuten Securities Inc. boosted its holdings in Zoetis by 5,533.3% in the fourth quarter. Rakuten Securities Inc. now owns 169 shares of the company’s stock valued at $28,000 after purchasing an additional 166 shares during the last quarter. Navigoe LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Zoetis during the fourth quarter worth approximately $30,000. Murphy & Mullick Capital Management Corp bought a new stake in shares of Zoetis in the 4th quarter worth about $44,000. Finally, Asset Planning Inc bought a new stake in Zoetis in the fourth quarter valued at about $58,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 92.80% of the company’s stock.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, EVP Roxanne Lagano sold 326 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Monday, March 10th. The shares were sold at an average price of $170.00, for a total value of $55,420.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now owns 15,781 shares in the company, 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 this hyperlink. Also, Director Willie M. Reed sold 1,210 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, March 11th. The shares were sold at an average price of $166.14, for a total value of $201,029.40. Following the sale, the director now owns 11,245 shares in the company, valued at approximately $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. Company insiders own 0.18% of the company’s stock.

Zoetis Stock Performance

ZTS stock opened at $165.20 on Thursday. Zoetis Inc. has a 52 week low of $139.70 and a 52 week high of $200.33. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.09, a quick ratio of 1.08 and a current ratio of 1.75. The stock has a market cap of $73.55 billion, a P/E ratio of 30.20, a P/E/G ratio of 2.78 and a beta of 0.94. The firm has a 50 day simple moving average of $156.58 and a 200 day simple moving average of $164.69.

Zoetis (NYSE:ZTS) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, May 6th. The company reported $1.48 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.40 by $0.08. The business had revenue of $2.22 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $2.20 billion. Zoetis had a return on equity of 53.82% and a net margin of 26.86%. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 1.4% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business posted $1.38 EPS. Research analysts anticipate that Zoetis Inc. will post 6.07 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Zoetis Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, September 3rd. Stockholders of record on Friday, July 18th will be paid a $0.50 dividend. This represents a $2.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.21%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, July 18th. Zoetis’s payout ratio is 35.91%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities research analysts recently weighed in on ZTS shares. Morgan Stanley dropped their price objective on shares of Zoetis from $243.00 to $238.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, February 14th. Barclays upped their price objective on shares of Zoetis from $242.00 to $244.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, February 14th. Wall Street Zen raised Zoetis from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, March 7th. Stifel Nicolaus lowered their price objective on shares of Zoetis from $180.00 to $165.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, April 14th. Finally, UBS Group decreased their target price on Zoetis from $189.00 to $170.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, May 7th. One analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating, eight have given a buy rating and two have assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Zoetis presently has an average rating of “Buy” and an average target price of $212.75.

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.