Ensign Peak Advisors Inc Cuts Stake in Zoetis Inc. (NYSE:ZTS)

Ensign Peak Advisors Inc lessened its holdings in shares of Zoetis Inc. (NYSE:ZTS - Free Report) by 21.1% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 292,863 shares of the company's stock after selling 78,284 shares during the quarter. Ensign Peak Advisors Inc owned about 0.06% of Zoetis worth $47,716,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of the business. Ethic Inc. increased its holdings in shares of Zoetis by 4.9% in the 4th quarter. Ethic Inc. now owns 45,458 shares of the company's stock worth $7,406,000 after purchasing an additional 2,106 shares in the last quarter. Ewing Morris & Co. Investment Partners Ltd. bought a new position in Zoetis during the fourth quarter valued at $1,132,000. Fullcircle Wealth LLC grew its stake in shares of Zoetis by 11.9% during the fourth quarter. Fullcircle Wealth LLC now owns 7,322 shares of the company's stock valued at $1,208,000 after buying an additional 776 shares during the last quarter. Deutsche Bank AG boosted its position in Zoetis by 29.7% in the 4th quarter. Deutsche Bank AG now owns 2,888,974 shares of the company's stock valued at $470,701,000 after buying an additional 661,287 shares during the period. Finally, Eagle Global Advisors LLC grew its stake in Zoetis by 47.3% in the fourth quarter. Eagle Global Advisors LLC now owns 19,416 shares of the company's stock valued at $3,163,000 after purchasing an additional 6,239 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 92.80% of the company's stock.

Insider Transactions at Zoetis

In related news, EVP Roxanne Lagano sold 326 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Monday, March 10th. The shares were sold at an average price of $170.00, for a total transaction of $55,420.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 15,781 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,682,770. The trade was a 2.02% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, Director Willie M. Reed sold 1,210 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, March 11th. The shares were sold at an average price of $166.14, for a total transaction of $201,029.40. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now directly owns 11,245 shares in the company, valued at $1,868,244.30. The trade was a 9.71% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Corporate insiders own 0.16% of the company's stock.

Zoetis Trading Up 2.7%

Shares of NYSE ZTS traded up $4.24 during trading on Thursday, hitting $159.16. 2,368,390 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 2,507,002. Zoetis Inc. has a 1 year low of $139.70 and a 1 year high of $200.33. The firm has a market capitalization of $70.86 billion, a P/E ratio of 29.08, a P/E/G ratio of 2.78 and a beta of 0.94. 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 company has a 50-day moving average price of $156.72 and a 200-day moving average price of $165.71.

Zoetis (NYSE:ZTS - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, May 6th. The company reported $1.48 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.40 by $0.08. The company had revenue of $2.22 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.20 billion. Zoetis had a return on equity of 53.82% and a net margin of 26.86%. The company's revenue for the quarter was up 1.4% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the company posted $1.38 earnings per share. On average, equities analysts predict that Zoetis Inc. will post 6.07 EPS for the current year.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several brokerages recently commented on ZTS. Barclays boosted their price target on Zoetis from $242.00 to $244.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research report on Friday, February 14th. StockNews.com raised shares of Zoetis from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research report on Friday, March 7th. Stifel Nicolaus lowered their price target on Zoetis from $180.00 to $165.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research report on Monday, April 14th. Morgan Stanley dropped their target price on shares of Zoetis from $243.00 to $238.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, February 14th. Finally, Piper Sandler upped their target price on shares of Zoetis from $205.00 to $210.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a report on Monday. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating, eight have assigned a buy rating and two have assigned a strong buy rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of "Buy" and a consensus target price of $212.75.

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.