Los Angeles Capital Management LLC Sells 20,249 Shares of Zoetis Inc. (NYSE:ZTS)

Los Angeles Capital Management LLC reduced its stake in Zoetis Inc. (NYSE:ZTS) by 5.4% during the 1st quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 357,084 shares of the company’s stock after selling 20,249 shares during the quarter. Los Angeles Capital Management LLC owned 0.08% of Zoetis worth $60,422,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Norges Bank acquired a new position in shares of Zoetis during the 4th quarter worth about $980,646,000. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD increased its stake in shares of Zoetis by 31.0% during the 4th quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD now owns 13,716,681 shares of the company’s stock worth $2,707,262,000 after purchasing an additional 3,244,074 shares during the last quarter. Public Employees Retirement Association of Colorado acquired a new position in shares of Zoetis during the 4th quarter worth about $242,757,000. CIBC Private Wealth Group LLC increased its stake in shares of Zoetis by 122.6% during the 4th quarter. CIBC Private Wealth Group LLC now owns 1,448,665 shares of the company’s stock worth $285,923,000 after purchasing an additional 797,884 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Corient Private Wealth LLC increased its stake in shares of Zoetis by 44.4% during the 4th quarter. Corient Private Wealth LLC now owns 1,953,508 shares of the company’s stock worth $385,564,000 after purchasing an additional 600,804 shares during the last quarter. 92.80% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Insider Transactions at Zoetis

In other news, EVP Roxanne Lagano sold 923 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, April 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $151.17, for a total transaction of $139,529.91. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now owns 14,800 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,237,316. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. 0.16% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Zoetis Stock Performance

NYSE ZTS opened at $169.66 on Thursday. The company has a quick ratio of 1.94, a current ratio of 3.33 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.30. The company has a market capitalization of $77.42 billion, a P/E ratio of 32.69, a P/E/G ratio of 2.64 and a beta of 0.88. Zoetis Inc. has a 12-month low of $144.80 and a 12-month high of $201.92. The firm has a 50-day moving average price of $166.03 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $179.36.

Zoetis (NYSE:ZTS) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, May 2nd. The company reported $1.38 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.34 by $0.04. The firm had revenue of $2.19 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.14 billion. Zoetis had a net margin of 27.38% and a return on equity of 50.34%. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 9.5% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $1.31 EPS. Analysts anticipate that Zoetis Inc. will post 5.76 earnings per share for the current year.

Zoetis Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, September 4th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, July 18th will be issued a dividend of $0.432 per share. This represents a $1.73 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.02%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, July 18th. Zoetis’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 33.33%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research analysts have recently weighed in on ZTS shares. Barclays lowered their price objective on shares of Zoetis from $260.00 to $230.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, April 23rd. HSBC decreased their price target on shares of Zoetis from $230.00 to $225.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, May 8th. Piper Sandler reiterated an “overweight” rating and issued a $195.00 price target (down previously from $220.00) on shares of Zoetis in a research note on Tuesday, April 16th. Stifel Nicolaus decreased their price target on shares of Zoetis from $195.00 to $180.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, April 30th. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group decreased their price target on shares of Zoetis from $223.00 to $196.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, May 6th. Eight equities research analysts have rated the stock with a buy rating, According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Buy” and a consensus price target of $211.75.

Zoetis 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.