Sequoia Financial Advisors LLC Sells 170,846 Shares of Zoetis Inc. (NYSE:ZTS)

Sequoia Financial Advisors LLC decreased its stake in Zoetis Inc. (NYSE:ZTS - Free Report) by 81.5% in the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 38,765 shares of the company's stock after selling 170,846 shares during the period. Sequoia Financial Advisors LLC's holdings in Zoetis were worth $6,383,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also added to or reduced their stakes in ZTS. Rakuten Securities Inc. raised its stake 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 during the last quarter. Navigoe LLC bought a new position in shares of Zoetis during the fourth quarter valued at $30,000. Murphy & Mullick Capital Management Corp bought a new position in shares of Zoetis during the fourth quarter valued at $44,000. Sound Income Strategies LLC raised 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 valued at $46,000 after acquiring an additional 164 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Bfsg LLC raised its stake 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 acquiring an additional 252 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 92.80% of the company's stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities analysts have recently issued reports on ZTS shares. UBS Group dropped their price target on shares of Zoetis from $189.00 to $170.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, May 7th. Stifel Nicolaus downgraded shares of Zoetis from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating and dropped their price target for the company from $165.00 to $160.00 in a research note on Wednesday, June 18th. Piper Sandler raised their price target 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, Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of Zoetis from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research report on Friday, March 7th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, seven have issued a buy rating and two have issued a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of "Buy" and an average price target of $212.13.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Zoetis 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 value of $110,840.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 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 transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Corporate insiders own 0.18% of the company's stock.

Zoetis Trading Up 0.2%

ZTS opened at $156.17 on Friday. Zoetis Inc. has a twelve month low of $139.70 and a twelve 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. The company has a fifty day moving average of $160.40 and a 200-day moving average of $162.73. The stock has a market cap of $69.53 billion, a PE ratio of 28.04, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.58 and a beta of 0.94.

Zoetis (NYSE:ZTS - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, May 6th. The company reported $1.48 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $1.40 by $0.08. The business had revenue of $2.22 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $2.20 billion. Zoetis had a net margin of 27.12% and a return on equity of 55.48%. The business's quarterly revenue was up 1.4% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the company posted $1.38 earnings per share. On average, sell-side analysts predict that Zoetis Inc. will post 6.07 EPS for the current year.

Zoetis Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, September 3rd. Shareholders of record on Friday, July 18th will be issued a $0.50 dividend. This represents a $2.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.28%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, July 18th. 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.

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