Alberta Investment Management Corp Cuts Stock Position in Zoetis Inc. (NYSE:ZTS)

Key Points

• Alberta Investment Management Corp significantly reduced its stake in Zoetis Inc. by 87.7%, now holding only 3,700 shares after selling 26,400 shares in the first quarter.
• Several other institutional investors are increasing their positions in Zoetis, including Tandem Investment Advisors Inc., which raised its stake by 100.3% to own 395,626 shares valued at $65.14 million.
• Analysts have mixed ratings for Zoetis, with four giving a hold rating, while others have varied target prices ranging from $155 to $210.

Alberta Investment Management Corp cut its holdings in Zoetis Inc. (NYSE:ZTS - Free Report) by 87.7% during the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 3,700 shares of the company's stock after selling 26,400 shares during the period. Alberta Investment Management Corp's holdings in Zoetis were worth $609,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds have also recently made changes to their positions in the business. Coppell Advisory Solutions LLC grew its stake in shares of Zoetis by 18.0% during the fourth quarter. Coppell Advisory Solutions LLC now owns 420 shares of the company's stock valued at $68,000 after buying an additional 64 shares during the last quarter. Lindbrook Capital LLC grew its position in Zoetis by 1.8% in the 1st quarter. Lindbrook Capital LLC now owns 3,715 shares of the company's stock valued at $612,000 after acquiring an additional 65 shares during the last quarter. Legacy Financial Advisors Inc. increased its stake in Zoetis by 5.8% in the fourth quarter. Legacy Financial Advisors Inc. now owns 1,282 shares of the company's stock worth $209,000 after purchasing an additional 70 shares during the period. Quotient Wealth Partners LLC lifted its position in shares of Zoetis by 2.3% during the first quarter. Quotient Wealth Partners LLC now owns 3,167 shares of the company's stock worth $521,000 after purchasing an additional 72 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Broadway Wealth Solutions Inc. boosted its position in Zoetis by 4.4% in the 1st quarter. Broadway Wealth Solutions Inc. now owns 1,746 shares of the company's stock valued at $287,000 after buying an additional 73 shares during the period. 92.80% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities analysts have recently issued reports on the company. Piper Sandler increased their price target on Zoetis from $205.00 to $210.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research report on Monday, May 12th. Stifel Nicolaus cut shares of Zoetis from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating and decreased their target price for the company from $165.00 to $160.00 in a research report on Wednesday, June 18th. UBS Group lowered their price target on Zoetis from $189.00 to $170.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, May 7th. Leerink Partners downgraded shares of Zoetis from an "outperform" rating to a "market perform" rating and lowered their price objective for the stock from $180.00 to $155.00 in a research note on Thursday, July 17th. Finally, Leerink Partnrs downgraded Zoetis from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Thursday, July 17th. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, six have issued a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $204.63.

Insider Transactions at Zoetis

In other Zoetis news, EVP Roxanne Lagano sold 652 shares of Zoetis stock in a transaction on Tuesday, June 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $170.00, for a total value of $110,840.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president owned 15,129 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $2,571,930. The trade was a 4.13% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Company insiders own 0.16% of the company's stock.

Zoetis Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE:ZTS traded up $0.51 during midday trading on Wednesday, reaching $146.63. The company's stock had a trading volume of 4,986,954 shares, compared to its average volume of 3,125,300. The company has a quick ratio of 1.04, a current ratio of 1.74 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.12. The stock has a fifty day moving average of $157.89 and a 200 day moving average of $160.16. Zoetis Inc. has a twelve month low of $139.70 and a twelve month high of $200.33. The firm has a market capitalization of $65.28 billion, a PE ratio of 26.32, a P/E/G ratio of 2.52 and a beta of 0.88.

Zoetis (NYSE:ZTS - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, August 5th. The company reported $1.76 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.62 by $0.14. The company had revenue of $2.46 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.41 billion. Zoetis had a net margin of 27.12% and a return on equity of 55.48%. The firm's revenue was up 4.2% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $1.56 earnings per share. On average, equities analysts expect that Zoetis Inc. will post 6.07 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Zoetis Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, September 3rd. Investors of record on Friday, July 18th will be issued a dividend of $0.50 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, July 18th. This represents a $2.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.4%. Zoetis's dividend payout ratio is 35.91%.

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.