Pacer Advisors Inc. Raises Stake in Zoetis Inc. $ZTS

Key Points

• Pacer Advisors Inc. increased its Zoetis stake by 18.3% in the fourth quarter, buying 21,964 additional shares and bringing its total to 141,883 shares worth about $17.85 million.
• Several other institutional investors also boosted or initiated positions, and hedge funds and other institutions now own about 92.8% of Zoetis stock.
• Zoetis shares were down 3.4% to $74.32 after the company reported Q1 earnings of $1.53 per share, missing estimates, while analysts currently rate the stock a consensus Hold with a $141.25 target price.

Pacer Advisors Inc. grew its stake in shares of Zoetis Inc. (NYSE:ZTS - Free Report) by 18.3% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 141,883 shares of the company's stock after purchasing an additional 21,964 shares during the period. Pacer Advisors Inc.'s holdings in Zoetis were worth $17,852,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Ameritas Advisory Services LLC boosted its position in shares of Zoetis by 613.8% during the 4th quarter. Ameritas Advisory Services LLC now owns 3,041 shares of the company's stock worth $383,000 after purchasing an additional 2,615 shares in the last quarter. World Investment Advisors boosted its position in shares of Zoetis by 11.8% during the 4th quarter. World Investment Advisors now owns 29,714 shares of the company's stock worth $3,739,000 after purchasing an additional 3,137 shares in the last quarter. Argos Wealth Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Zoetis during the 4th quarter worth $547,000. Schwartz Investment Counsel Inc. boosted its position in shares of Zoetis by 6.8% during the 4th quarter. Schwartz Investment Counsel Inc. now owns 267,000 shares of the company's stock worth $33,594,000 after purchasing an additional 17,000 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Investors Asset Management of Georgia Inc. GA ADV boosted its position in shares of Zoetis by 44.1% during the 4th quarter. Investors Asset Management of Georgia Inc. GA ADV now owns 5,721 shares of the company's stock worth $720,000 after purchasing an additional 1,751 shares in the last quarter. 92.80% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Activity at Zoetis

In other news, Director Paul Bisaro bought 2,000 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, May 13th. The stock was purchased at an average price of $75.88 per share, with a total value of $151,760.00. Following the purchase, the director owned 27,862 shares of the company's stock, valued at $2,114,168.56. This trade represents a 7.73% increase in their position. The acquisition was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, Director Frank A. Damelio bought 6,650 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, May 13th. The stock was purchased at an average cost of $75.39 per share, with a total value of $501,343.50. Following the purchase, the director directly owned 21,458 shares in the company, valued at $1,617,718.62. The trade was a 44.91% increase in their position. The SEC filing for this purchase provides additional information. In the last quarter, insiders bought 11,650 shares of company stock valued at $886,384. 0.22% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several brokerages have commented on ZTS. William Blair restated an "outperform" rating on shares of Zoetis in a research report on Monday, March 2nd. Stifel Nicolaus set a $105.00 price target on Zoetis in a research note on Friday, May 8th. UBS Group cut their price target on Zoetis from $130.00 to $99.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a research note on Friday, May 8th. Leerink Partners reaffirmed a "market perform" rating on shares of Zoetis in a research note on Tuesday, March 10th. Finally, Weiss Ratings downgraded Zoetis from a "hold (c-)" rating to a "sell (d+)" rating in a research note on Friday, March 27th. Seven analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, seven have given a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $141.25.

Zoetis Trading Down 3.4%

NYSE:ZTS opened at $74.32 on Thursday. The company has a market capitalization of $31.16 billion, a PE ratio of 12.33, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.26 and a beta of 0.87. The company has a quick ratio of 1.91, a current ratio of 3.15 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.80. Zoetis Inc. has a 52-week low of $74.29 and a 52-week high of $172.23. The stock has a fifty day simple moving average of $114.33 and a 200-day simple moving average of $121.77.

Zoetis (NYSE:ZTS - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, May 7th. The company reported $1.53 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.60 by ($0.07). Zoetis had a net margin of 27.80% and a return on equity of 66.85%. The firm had revenue of $2.26 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.30 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $1.48 EPS. The company's revenue for the quarter was up 2.9% compared to the same quarter last year. Zoetis has set its FY 2026 guidance at 6.850-7.000 EPS. On average, equities research analysts expect that Zoetis Inc. will post 6.89 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Zoetis Company Profile

Zoetis Inc NYSE: ZTS is a global animal health company that develops, manufactures and markets a broad portfolio of products and services for companion animals and livestock. The company's offerings include pharmaceuticals, vaccines and biologics, parasiticides and anti-infectives, as well as diagnostic instruments, consumables and laboratory testing services. Zoetis serves the veterinary community, livestock producers and other animal-health customers with products designed to prevent, detect and treat disease and to support animal productivity and welfare.

Zoetis traces its roots to the animal health business of Pfizer and became an independent, publicly traded company following a 2013 separation and initial public offering.

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