Russell Investments Group Ltd. Lowers Stock Holdings in Zoetis Inc. (NYSE:ZTS)

Russell Investments Group Ltd. cut its position in shares of Zoetis Inc. (NYSE:ZTS) by 8.6% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 779,529 shares of the company’s stock after selling 73,400 shares during the quarter. Russell Investments Group Ltd. owned approximately 0.17% of Zoetis worth $153,847,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other large investors also recently modified their holdings of the company. River Street Advisors LLC boosted its stake in shares of Zoetis by 3.4% during the fourth quarter. River Street Advisors LLC now owns 1,757 shares of the company’s stock valued at $347,000 after purchasing an additional 58 shares during the period. Perigon Wealth Management LLC increased its position in shares of Zoetis by 0.3% in the fourth quarter. Perigon Wealth Management LLC now owns 23,581 shares of the company’s stock valued at $4,654,000 after acquiring an additional 59 shares during the period. TFC Financial Management Inc. raised its stake in shares of Zoetis by 3.3% during the third quarter. TFC Financial Management Inc. now owns 1,918 shares of the company’s stock valued at $334,000 after acquiring an additional 61 shares during the last quarter. Revolve Wealth Partners LLC grew its stake in shares of Zoetis by 5.0% in the fourth quarter. Revolve Wealth Partners LLC now owns 1,281 shares of the company’s stock worth $253,000 after purchasing an additional 61 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Townsend Asset Management Corp NC ADV increased its holdings in Zoetis by 0.3% during the 3rd quarter. Townsend Asset Management Corp NC ADV now owns 22,585 shares of the company’s stock valued at $3,929,000 after purchasing an additional 66 shares during the period. 92.80% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities analysts have recently issued reports on ZTS shares. The Goldman Sachs Group boosted their target price on Zoetis from $190.00 to $226.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, January 17th. Piper Sandler reiterated an “overweight” rating and set a $195.00 price target (down previously from $220.00) on shares of Zoetis in a research report on Tuesday, April 16th. StockNews.com downgraded Zoetis from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, February 20th. Barclays dropped their price target on Zoetis from $260.00 to $230.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus lowered their price objective on Zoetis from $215.00 to $195.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, April 2nd. Eight research analysts have rated the stock with a buy rating, According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Buy” and a consensus price target of $218.00.

Zoetis Stock Up 3.3 %

Shares of NYSE:ZTS traded up $5.06 during trading on Friday, reaching $158.42. 5,236,463 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 4,019,007. Zoetis Inc. has a 52-week low of $144.80 and a 52-week high of $201.92. The stock has a market cap of $72.45 billion, a P/E ratio of 31.25, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.34 and a beta of 0.85. The stock has a 50-day moving average of $171.79 and a two-hundred day moving average of $179.29. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.32, a quick ratio of 2.00 and a current ratio of 3.36.

Zoetis (NYSE:ZTS) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, February 13th. The company reported $1.24 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.32 by ($0.08). The business had revenue of $2.21 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.19 billion. Zoetis had a net margin of 27.43% and a return on equity of 51.25%. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 8.5% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned $1.15 earnings per share. As a group, sell-side analysts expect that Zoetis Inc. will post 5.79 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Zoetis Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, June 4th. Stockholders of record on Friday, April 19th will be issued a dividend of $0.432 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, April 18th. This represents a $1.73 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.09%. Zoetis’s payout ratio is 34.12%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, EVP Roxanne Lagano sold 363 shares of Zoetis stock in a transaction on Monday, February 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $197.74, for a total transaction of $71,779.62. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 20,417 shares in the company, valued at approximately $4,037,257.58. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Insiders sold 2,209 shares of company stock valued at $371,293 over the last 90 days. Company insiders own 0.12% of the company’s stock.

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.