Gateway Investment Advisers LLC Buys 1,614 Shares of Zoetis Inc. (NYSE:ZTS)

Gateway Investment Advisers LLC grew its stake in shares of Zoetis Inc. (NYSE:ZTS - Free Report) by 121.0% in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the SEC. The firm owned 2,948 shares of the company's stock after acquiring an additional 1,614 shares during the quarter. Gateway Investment Advisers LLC's holdings in Zoetis were worth $485,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other large investors also recently modified their holdings of the stock. Atlantic Edge Private Wealth Management LLC increased its stake in shares of Zoetis by 482.8% in the 4th quarter. Atlantic Edge Private Wealth Management LLC now owns 169 shares of the company's stock valued at $28,000 after purchasing an additional 140 shares during the last quarter. Rakuten Securities Inc. boosted its stake in Zoetis by 5,533.3% in the fourth quarter. Rakuten Securities Inc. now owns 169 shares of the company's stock valued at $28,000 after buying an additional 166 shares in the last quarter. Navigoe LLC acquired a new stake in Zoetis in the fourth quarter valued at about $30,000. Murphy & Mullick Capital Management Corp bought a new position in Zoetis in the fourth quarter valued at about $44,000. Finally, Asset Planning Inc acquired a new position in Zoetis during the fourth quarter worth about $58,000. 92.80% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research analysts have recently commented on the company. Wall Street Zen upgraded Zoetis from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research note on Friday, March 7th. Piper Sandler increased their target price on Zoetis from $205.00 to $210.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research report on Monday, May 12th. Stifel Nicolaus reduced their price target on Zoetis from $180.00 to $165.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a report on Monday, April 14th. Barclays upped their price objective on Zoetis from $242.00 to $244.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research note on Friday, February 14th. Finally, Morgan Stanley cut 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. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating, eight have assigned a buy rating and two have given a strong buy rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of "Buy" and an average target price of $212.75.

Insider Activity at Zoetis

In other Zoetis news, EVP Roxanne Lagano sold 652 shares of the stock in a transaction dated 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 sale, the executive vice president now owns 15,129 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,571,930. This trade represents a 4.13% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. 0.18% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Zoetis Trading Down 0.5%

Shares of NYSE ZTS traded down $0.79 during midday trading on Wednesday, reaching $166.31. The stock had a trading volume of 2,473,138 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,547,541. The company's 50 day moving average price is $157.58 and its 200 day moving average price is $164.14. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.09, a quick ratio of 1.08 and a current ratio of 1.75. Zoetis Inc. has a twelve month low of $139.70 and a twelve month high of $200.33. The firm has a market cap of $74.04 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 30.40, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.78 and a beta of 0.94.

Zoetis (NYSE:ZTS - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, May 6th. The company reported $1.48 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.40 by $0.08. Zoetis had a net margin of 26.86% and a return on equity of 53.82%. The firm had revenue of $2.22 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.20 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned $1.38 earnings per share. The business's quarterly revenue was up 1.4% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, sell-side analysts expect that Zoetis Inc. will post 6.07 EPS for the current year.

Zoetis Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, September 3rd. Investors of record on Friday, July 18th will be given a dividend of $0.50 per share. The ex-dividend date is Friday, July 18th. This represents a $2.00 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.20%. Zoetis's payout ratio is 35.91%.

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.