Aurora Private Wealth Inc. Acquires New Position in Zoetis Inc. (NYSE:ZTS)

Aurora Private Wealth Inc. bought a new position in shares of Zoetis Inc. (NYSE:ZTS - Free Report) during the first quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund bought 14,498 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $2,387,000.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Norges Bank purchased a new position in Zoetis in the fourth quarter worth approximately $824,321,000. Wellington Management Group LLP raised its stake in shares of Zoetis by 78.5% in the 4th quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 6,958,543 shares of the company's stock valued at $1,133,755,000 after acquiring an additional 3,059,255 shares during the period. Sarasin & Partners LLP acquired a new position in shares of Zoetis in the 1st quarter worth approximately $339,111,000. GAMMA Investing LLC boosted its position in shares of Zoetis by 14,731.3% during the 1st quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 1,759,285 shares of the company's stock worth $289,666,000 after purchasing an additional 1,747,423 shares during the period. Finally, Raymond James Financial Inc. purchased a new stake in Zoetis in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $196,651,000. 92.80% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Buying and Selling at Zoetis

In other news, EVP Roxanne Lagano sold 652 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, June 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $170.00, for a total transaction of $110,840.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 15,129 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,571,930. This trade represents a 4.13% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Insiders own 0.18% of the company's stock.

Zoetis Stock Performance

Shares of Zoetis stock opened at $159.19 on Friday. The firm has a market capitalization of $70.87 billion, a P/E ratio of 28.58, a P/E/G ratio of 2.64 and a beta of 0.91. The company has a quick ratio of 1.04, a current ratio of 1.74 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.12. Zoetis Inc. has a 52 week low of $139.70 and a 52 week high of $200.33. The firm's 50 day moving average is $161.05 and its two-hundred day moving average is $162.20.

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, topping the consensus estimate of $1.40 by $0.08. The firm had revenue of $2.22 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.20 billion. Zoetis had a net margin of 27.12% and a return on equity of 55.48%. Zoetis's revenue for the quarter was up 1.4% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the business earned $1.38 EPS. Research analysts forecast that Zoetis Inc. will post 6.07 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Zoetis Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, September 3rd. Shareholders of record on Friday, July 18th will be paid a $0.50 dividend. This represents a $2.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.26%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, July 18th. Zoetis's dividend payout ratio is currently 35.91%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of brokerages recently commented on ZTS. UBS Group lowered their target price on Zoetis from $189.00 to $170.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, May 7th. Piper Sandler raised their price objective on shares of Zoetis from $205.00 to $210.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research note on Monday, May 12th. Wall Street Zen raised shares of Zoetis from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research note on Friday, March 7th. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus cut shares of Zoetis from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating and decreased their price target for the company from $165.00 to $160.00 in a research report on Wednesday, June 18th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, seven have given a buy rating and two have issued a strong buy rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of "Buy" and an average target price of $212.13.

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.

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