Leerink Partnrs Forecasts Zoetis’ FY2024 Earnings (NYSE:ZTS)

Zoetis Inc. (NYSE:ZTS) – Investment analysts at Leerink Partnrs reduced their FY2024 earnings per share (EPS) estimates for shares of Zoetis in a note issued to investors on Thursday, January 16th. Leerink Partnrs analyst D. Clark now expects that the company will earn $5.94 per share for the year, down from their prior forecast of $5.96. Leerink Partnrs has a “Strong-Buy” rating on the stock. The consensus estimate for Zoetis’ current full-year earnings is $5.91 per share. Leerink Partnrs also issued estimates for Zoetis’ Q4 2024 earnings at $1.42 EPS, Q1 2025 earnings at $1.49 EPS, Q3 2025 earnings at $1.71 EPS, Q4 2025 earnings at $1.56 EPS, FY2025 earnings at $6.44 EPS, FY2026 earnings at $7.14 EPS, FY2027 earnings at $7.77 EPS and FY2028 earnings at $8.43 EPS.

Zoetis (NYSE:ZTS) last issued its quarterly earnings data 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 during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.29 billion. Zoetis had a return on equity of 51.98% and a net margin of 26.55%. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 11.6% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $1.36 EPS.

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

Zoetis Stock Performance

ZTS opened at $166.01 on Friday. The company has a market capitalization of $74.90 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 31.20, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.51 and a beta of 0.89. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.26, a current ratio of 3.69 and a quick ratio of 2.27. Zoetis has a 1-year low of $144.80 and a 1-year high of $200.53. The business has a 50 day moving average price of $170.93 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $179.95.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. State Street Corp increased its holdings in Zoetis by 0.5% during the third quarter. State Street Corp now owns 19,779,344 shares of the company’s stock worth $3,864,488,000 after buying an additional 95,856 shares during the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC grew its stake in shares of Zoetis by 1.8% in the third quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 10,427,760 shares of the company’s stock valued at $2,030,813,000 after acquiring an additional 185,364 shares in the last quarter. Mizuho Securities USA LLC lifted its position in Zoetis by 13,726.9% during the third quarter. Mizuho Securities USA LLC now owns 4,865,000 shares of the company’s stock worth $950,524,000 after purchasing an additional 4,829,815 shares during the period. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC lifted its position in Zoetis by 5.3% during the third quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC now owns 3,896,106 shares of the company’s stock worth $761,221,000 after purchasing an additional 194,542 shares during the period. Finally, Clearbridge Investments LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Zoetis by 5.8% in the second quarter. Clearbridge Investments LLC now owns 3,044,384 shares of the company’s stock worth $527,774,000 after acquiring an additional 166,517 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 92.80% of the company’s stock.

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 paid a dividend of $0.50 per share. This is a positive change 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 (DPR) is presently 32.52%.

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.