Artemis Investment Management LLP Buys 97,036 Shares of Zoetis Inc. (NYSE:ZTS)

Artemis Investment Management LLP raised its stake in Zoetis Inc. (NYSE:ZTS) by 55.0% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 273,578 shares of the company’s stock after purchasing an additional 97,036 shares during the quarter. Artemis Investment Management LLP’s holdings in Zoetis were worth $44,574,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in ZTS. Mercer Global Advisors Inc. ADV lifted its stake in Zoetis by 12.3% in the second quarter. Mercer Global Advisors Inc. ADV now owns 49,298 shares of the company’s stock valued at $8,530,000 after acquiring an additional 5,384 shares during the last quarter. GM Advisory Group LLC acquired a new stake in Zoetis in the 2nd quarter valued at about $243,000. Canada Pension Plan Investment Board lifted its stake in Zoetis by 7.7% in the 2nd quarter. Canada Pension Plan Investment Board now owns 688,738 shares of the company’s stock valued at $119,400,000 after purchasing an additional 49,386 shares during the last quarter. Callan Capital LLC grew its holdings in Zoetis by 7.1% during the second quarter. Callan Capital LLC now owns 2,688 shares of the company’s stock worth $466,000 after purchasing an additional 178 shares during the period. Finally, AE Wealth Management LLC increased its position in Zoetis by 9.5% during the second quarter. AE Wealth Management LLC now owns 1,988 shares of the company’s stock worth $345,000 after buying an additional 172 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 92.80% of the company’s stock.

Zoetis Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE:ZTS opened at $166.01 on Friday. Zoetis Inc. has a 12-month low of $144.80 and a 12-month high of $200.53. The company’s 50 day moving average price is $170.93 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $179.95. The firm has a market cap of $74.90 billion, a PE ratio of 31.20, a PEG ratio of 2.51 and a beta of 0.89. The company has a quick ratio of 2.27, a current ratio of 3.69 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.26.

Zoetis (NYSE:ZTS) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Monday, November 4th. The company reported $1.58 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.46 by $0.12. The business had revenue of $2.40 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.29 billion. Zoetis had a return on equity of 51.98% and a net margin of 26.55%. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 11.6% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business posted $1.36 earnings per share. Equities research analysts predict that Zoetis Inc. will post 5.91 earnings per share for the current year.

Zoetis Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, March 4th. Investors of record on Tuesday, January 21st will be given a dividend of $0.50 per share. This is a boost from Zoetis’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.43. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, January 21st. This represents a $2.00 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.20%. Zoetis’s dividend payout ratio is currently 32.52%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several brokerages have recently commented on ZTS. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their target price on Zoetis from $225.00 to $230.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday, October 11th. Leerink Partners started coverage on shares of Zoetis in a research report on Monday, December 2nd. They set an “outperform” rating and a $215.00 price objective for the company. UBS Group began coverage on shares of Zoetis in a research report on Monday, December 9th. They issued a “neutral” rating and a $196.00 price objective on the stock. Stifel Nicolaus reduced their target price on shares of Zoetis from $210.00 to $180.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, January 7th. Finally, Leerink Partnrs raised shares of Zoetis to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Monday, December 2nd. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating, nine have issued a buy rating and two have given a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, Zoetis has an average rating of “Buy” and an average target price of $211.89.

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.