Zoetis Inc. (NYSE:ZTS) Shares Purchased by Walter Public Investments Inc.

Walter Public Investments Inc. lifted its position in Zoetis Inc. (NYSE:ZTS) by 10.2% during the fourth quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The fund owned 92,852 shares of the company’s stock after acquiring an additional 8,587 shares during the period. Zoetis makes up 2.7% of Walter Public Investments Inc.’s portfolio, making the stock its 21st largest position. Walter Public Investments Inc.’s holdings in Zoetis were worth $15,128,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Heritage Investors Management Corp boosted its stake in shares of Zoetis by 3.5% in the fourth quarter. Heritage Investors Management Corp now owns 185,104 shares of the company’s stock worth $30,159,000 after acquiring an additional 6,337 shares during the last quarter. SRN Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Zoetis in the fourth quarter worth approximately $225,000. Checchi Capital Advisers LLC boosted its stake in shares of Zoetis by 3.7% in the fourth quarter. Checchi Capital Advisers LLC now owns 3,122 shares of the company’s stock worth $509,000 after acquiring an additional 110 shares during the last quarter. Bryn Mawr Capital Management LLC boosted its stake in shares of Zoetis by 25.0% in the fourth quarter. Bryn Mawr Capital Management LLC now owns 20,902 shares of the company’s stock worth $3,406,000 after acquiring an additional 4,178 shares during the last quarter. Finally, National Pension Service boosted its stake in shares of Zoetis by 29.9% in the fourth quarter. National Pension Service now owns 1,212,614 shares of the company’s stock worth $197,571,000 after acquiring an additional 279,215 shares during the last quarter. 92.80% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Zoetis Stock Performance

Shares of Zoetis stock opened at $164.99 on Thursday. Zoetis Inc. has a 52 week low of $144.80 and a 52 week high of $200.53. The business’s fifty day simple moving average is $166.22 and its 200-day simple moving average is $177.58. The firm has a market cap of $73.88 billion, a PE ratio of 30.16, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.78 and a beta of 0.90. The company has a quick ratio of 1.08, a current ratio of 1.75 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.09.

Zoetis (NYSE:ZTS) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, February 13th. The company reported $1.40 EPS for the quarter, beating 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 analyst estimates of $2.30 billion. Equities analysts forecast that Zoetis Inc. will post 6.07 earnings per share for the current year.

Zoetis Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, June 3rd. Stockholders of record on Monday, April 21st will be paid a $0.50 dividend. This represents a $2.00 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.21%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, April 21st. Zoetis’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 36.56%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of analysts have recently issued reports on ZTS shares. UBS Group started coverage on Zoetis in a research note on Monday, December 9th. They issued a “neutral” rating and a $196.00 price target on the stock. Barclays boosted their price objective on Zoetis from $242.00 to $244.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday, February 14th. StockNews.com lowered Zoetis from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Tuesday. Leerink Partners started coverage on Zoetis in a research note on Monday, December 2nd. They set an “outperform” rating and a $215.00 price objective on the stock. Finally, Leerink Partnrs raised Zoetis to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Monday, December 2nd. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, nine have issued a buy rating and two have issued a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Buy” and a consensus target price of $215.40.

Insider Activity

In related news, EVP Roxanne Lagano sold 326 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, February 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $171.18, for a total value of $55,804.68. Following the sale, the executive vice president now owns 16,107 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,757,196.26. The trade was a 1.98 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. 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.