Zoetis Inc. (NYSE:ZTS) Shares Sold by New York State Teachers Retirement System

New York State Teachers Retirement System lessened its holdings in shares of Zoetis Inc. (NYSE:ZTS - Free Report) by 5.3% in the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 375,412 shares of the company's stock after selling 21,035 shares during the period. New York State Teachers Retirement System owned approximately 0.08% of Zoetis worth $61,812,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the business. Rakuten Securities Inc. increased its holdings in shares of Zoetis by 5,533.3% during the fourth quarter. Rakuten Securities Inc. now owns 169 shares of the company's stock valued at $28,000 after acquiring an additional 166 shares in the last quarter. Navigoe LLC acquired a new position in Zoetis during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $30,000. Murphy & Mullick Capital Management Corp purchased a new position in shares of Zoetis in the fourth quarter worth $44,000. Sound Income Strategies LLC lifted its stake in shares of Zoetis by 141.4% during the first quarter. Sound Income Strategies LLC now owns 280 shares of the company's stock worth $46,000 after buying an additional 164 shares during the period. Finally, Bfsg LLC grew its holdings in shares of Zoetis by 614.6% during the first quarter. Bfsg LLC now owns 293 shares of the company's stock valued at $48,000 after buying an additional 252 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 92.80% of the company's stock.

Insider Activity at Zoetis

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

Zoetis Price Performance

Shares of NYSE ZTS traded down $0.10 during mid-day trading on Wednesday, reaching $159.09. The company's stock had a trading volume of 2,128,431 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,569,235. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.12, a quick ratio of 1.04 and a current ratio of 1.74. The stock has a 50-day moving average of $160.76 and a two-hundred day moving average of $162.34. Zoetis Inc. has a 1-year low of $139.70 and a 1-year high of $200.33. The stock has a market capitalization of $70.83 billion, a P/E ratio of 28.56, a P/E/G ratio of 2.64 and a beta of 0.91.

Zoetis (NYSE:ZTS - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, May 6th. The company reported $1.48 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $1.40 by $0.08. Zoetis had a return on equity of 55.48% and a net margin of 27.12%. The company had revenue of $2.22 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.20 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $1.38 earnings per share. The firm's revenue for the quarter was up 1.4% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities research analysts anticipate that Zoetis Inc. will post 6.07 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Zoetis Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, September 3rd. Stockholders 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 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.26%. Zoetis's dividend payout ratio is currently 35.91%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities analysts recently issued reports on the company. UBS Group reduced their target price on Zoetis from $189.00 to $170.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, May 7th. Wall Street Zen raised Zoetis from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a report on Friday, March 7th. Stifel Nicolaus downgraded shares of Zoetis from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating and cut their price target for the stock from $165.00 to $160.00 in a report on Wednesday, June 18th. Finally, Piper Sandler lifted 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. 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. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of "Buy" and a consensus price target of $212.13.

Zoetis Company 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.