Fayez Sarofim & Co Has $206.83 Million Stock Position in Zoetis Inc. (NYSE:ZTS)

Key Points

• Fayez Sarofim & Co increased their stake in Zoetis Inc. by 7.0% during the first quarter, owning 1,256,163 shares valued at approximately $206.83 million by the quarter's end.
• Several other institutional investors have significantly boosted their positions in Zoetis, with Mackenzie Financial Corp raising its stake by 4,158.3% during the same period.
• Zoetis recently announced a quarterly dividend of $0.50 per share, set to be paid on September 3rd, representing an annual yield of 1.4% based on current valuation.

Fayez Sarofim & Co boosted its stake in shares of Zoetis Inc. (NYSE:ZTS - Free Report) by 7.0% in the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 1,256,163 shares of the company's stock after purchasing an additional 82,020 shares during the quarter. Fayez Sarofim & Co owned 0.28% of Zoetis worth $206,827,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Sarasin & Partners LLP bought a new position in Zoetis during the first quarter valued at about $339,111,000. Mackenzie Financial Corp raised its stake in shares of Zoetis by 4,158.3% in the first quarter. Mackenzie Financial Corp now owns 1,824,967 shares of the company's stock valued at $300,481,000 after purchasing an additional 1,782,110 shares in the last quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC lifted its position in Zoetis by 14,731.3% in the first 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. Capital Research Global Investors acquired a new stake in Zoetis during the fourth quarter worth $178,688,000. Finally, Northern Trust Corp raised its stake in shares of Zoetis by 13.3% in the 4th quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 6,426,394 shares of the company's stock valued at $1,047,052,000 after buying an additional 755,893 shares in the last quarter. 92.80% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Insider Transactions at Zoetis

In related news, EVP Roxanne Lagano sold 652 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction 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 sale, the executive vice president directly owned 15,129 shares in the company, valued at $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 available at this hyperlink. Insiders own 0.18% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

ZTS has been the subject of a number of analyst reports. Leerink Partnrs cut shares of Zoetis from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Thursday, July 17th. Stifel Nicolaus lowered 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 note on Wednesday, June 18th. UBS Group dropped their price objective on Zoetis from $189.00 to $170.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, May 7th. Piper Sandler boosted their target price 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. Finally, Leerink Partners cut shares of Zoetis from an "outperform" rating to a "market perform" rating and dropped their target price for the stock from $180.00 to $155.00 in a research report on Thursday, July 17th. Four analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, six have given a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Zoetis currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $204.63.

Zoetis Trading Up 0.3%

Shares of ZTS opened at $146.63 on Thursday. The stock's fifty day simple moving average is $157.52 and its 200-day simple moving average is $160.07. The firm has a market capitalization of $65.28 billion, a PE ratio of 25.24, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.42 and a beta of 0.88. Zoetis Inc. has a 12-month low of $139.70 and a 12-month high of $200.33. 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 (NYSE:ZTS - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, August 5th. The company reported $1.76 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.62 by $0.14. Zoetis had a net margin of 27.83% and a return on equity of 57.16%. The company had revenue of $2.46 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $2.41 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company earned $1.56 EPS. Zoetis's revenue was up 4.2% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, research analysts predict that Zoetis Inc. will post 6.07 earnings per share for the current year.

Zoetis Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, September 3rd. Shareholders of record on Friday, July 18th will be issued a dividend of $0.50 per share. The ex-dividend date is Friday, July 18th. This represents a $2.00 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.4%. Zoetis's payout ratio is currently 34.42%.

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.

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