Dover Advisors LLC Reduces Stake in Zoetis Inc. (NYSE:ZTS)

Dover Advisors LLC lowered its holdings in Zoetis Inc. (NYSE:ZTS) by 19.6% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the SEC. The fund owned 2,095 shares of the company’s stock after selling 512 shares during the quarter. Dover Advisors LLC’s holdings in Zoetis were worth $413,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the business. River Street Advisors LLC grew its position in shares of Zoetis by 3.4% in 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 grew 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 purchasing an additional 59 shares during the period. TFC Financial Management Inc. boosted its holdings in Zoetis by 3.3% in 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 boosted its holdings in Zoetis by 5.0% in the fourth quarter. Revolve Wealth Partners LLC now owns 1,281 shares of the company’s stock valued at $253,000 after acquiring an additional 61 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Townsend Asset Management Corp NC ADV boosted its holdings in Zoetis by 0.3% in the third quarter. Townsend Asset Management Corp NC ADV now owns 22,585 shares of the company’s stock valued at $3,929,000 after acquiring an additional 66 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 92.80% of the company’s stock.

Insider Transactions at Zoetis

In other news, EVP Roxanne Lagano sold 363 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, February 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $197.74, for a total transaction of $71,779.62. Following the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 20,417 shares in the company, valued at approximately $4,037,257.58. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Over the last ninety days, insiders have sold 2,209 shares of company stock valued at $371,293. 0.12% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research analysts recently weighed in on the company. The Goldman Sachs Group lifted their target price on Zoetis from $190.00 to $226.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, January 17th. Stifel Nicolaus reduced their target price on Zoetis from $215.00 to $195.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, April 2nd. StockNews.com cut Zoetis from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, February 20th. Piper Sandler restated an “overweight” rating and set a $195.00 price objective (down previously from $220.00) on shares of Zoetis in a research note on Tuesday, April 16th. Finally, Barclays reduced their price objective on Zoetis from $260.00 to $230.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, April 23rd. Eight research analysts have rated the stock with a buy rating, Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Buy” and an average target price of $218.00.

Zoetis Stock Up 3.3 %

Shares of NYSE ZTS traded up $5.06 during midday trading on Friday, reaching $158.42. 5,236,463 shares of the company’s stock were exchanged, 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 capitalization of $72.45 billion, a PE ratio of 31.25, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.42 and a beta of 0.85. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.32, a quick ratio of 2.00 and a current ratio of 3.36. The business’s fifty day moving average price is $171.79 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $179.33.

Zoetis (NYSE:ZTS) last announced its 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). Zoetis had a return on equity of 51.25% and a net margin of 27.43%. The business had revenue of $2.21 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $2.19 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $1.15 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue was up 8.5% compared to the same quarter last year. Analysts forecast that Zoetis Inc. will post 5.79 EPS for the current year.

Zoetis Dividend Announcement

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

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.