Choate Investment Advisors Boosts Stock Position in Zoetis Inc. (NYSE:ZTS)

Choate Investment Advisors raised its position in shares of Zoetis Inc. (NYSE:ZTS) by 37.6% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The fund owned 5,109 shares of the company’s stock after buying an additional 1,395 shares during the quarter. Choate Investment Advisors’ holdings in Zoetis were worth $832,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of ZTS. Callahan Advisors LLC lifted its position in Zoetis by 90.4% during the fourth quarter. Callahan Advisors LLC now owns 13,105 shares of the company’s stock valued at $2,135,000 after acquiring an additional 6,221 shares during the last quarter. Pensionfund Sabic lifted its holdings in shares of Zoetis by 55.6% during the 4th quarter. Pensionfund Sabic now owns 11,200 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,825,000 after purchasing an additional 4,000 shares during the last quarter. CIBC Asset Management Inc lifted its holdings in shares of Zoetis by 24.1% during the 4th quarter. CIBC Asset Management Inc now owns 237,369 shares of the company’s stock valued at $38,617,000 after purchasing an additional 46,050 shares during the last quarter. PFW Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Zoetis in the 4th quarter worth $1,764,000. Finally, Alberta Investment Management Corp grew its stake in Zoetis by 2,050.0% during the 4th quarter. Alberta Investment Management Corp now owns 30,100 shares of the company’s stock worth $4,904,000 after buying an additional 28,700 shares during the last quarter. 92.80% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Zoetis Stock Performance

Shares of ZTS stock opened at $161.33 on Monday. Zoetis Inc. has a 52-week low of $144.80 and a 52-week high of $200.33. The company has a quick ratio of 1.08, a current ratio of 1.75 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.09. The stock has a market cap of $72.24 billion, a PE ratio of 29.49, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.78 and a beta of 0.94. The business has a 50-day simple moving average of $166.82 and a 200-day simple moving average of $176.10.

Zoetis (NYSE:ZTS) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, February 13th. The company reported $1.40 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.37 by $0.03. Zoetis had a return on equity of 53.82% and a net margin of 26.86%. The company had revenue of $2.32 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.30 billion. On average, equities analysts expect that Zoetis Inc. will post 6.07 EPS for the current year.

Zoetis Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, June 3rd. Investors of record on Monday, April 21st will be given a dividend of $0.50 per share. The ex-dividend date is Monday, April 21st. This represents a $2.00 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.24%. Zoetis’s dividend payout ratio is presently 36.56%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research firms have commented on ZTS. Piper Sandler increased their price target on Zoetis from $200.00 to $205.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Thursday, February 27th. Stifel Nicolaus lowered their target price on shares of Zoetis from $210.00 to $180.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, January 7th. UBS Group initiated coverage on shares of Zoetis in a research note on Monday, December 9th. They set a “neutral” rating and a $196.00 price target on the stock. StockNews.com upgraded shares of Zoetis from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, March 7th. Finally, 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 on the stock. One research analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating, ten have assigned a buy rating and two have given a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Buy” and a consensus target price of $215.90.

Insider Buying and Selling at Zoetis

In related news, EVP Roxanne Lagano sold 326 shares of Zoetis stock in a transaction dated Monday, March 10th. The stock was sold at an average price of $170.00, for a total value of $55,420.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 15,781 shares in the company, valued at $2,682,770. The trade was a 2.02 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, Director Willie M. Reed sold 1,210 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, March 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $166.14, for a total value of $201,029.40. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now directly owns 11,245 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,868,244.30. The trade was a 9.71 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last quarter, insiders sold 1,862 shares of company stock valued at $312,254. 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.