Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Group Inc. Sells 64,413 Shares of Zoetis Inc. (NYSE:ZTS)

Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Group Inc. cut its position in Zoetis Inc. (NYSE:ZTS - Free Report) by 5.8% during the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The firm owned 1,046,202 shares of the company's stock after selling 64,413 shares during the period. Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Group Inc. owned about 0.23% of Zoetis worth $172,257,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Vista Investment Partners II LLC lifted its holdings in Zoetis by 16.3% during the first quarter. Vista Investment Partners II LLC now owns 13,409 shares of the company's stock worth $2,208,000 after acquiring an additional 1,878 shares in the last quarter. BSW Wealth Partners acquired a new stake in shares of Zoetis during the first quarter worth about $254,000. TCV Trust & Wealth Management Inc. raised its position in shares of Zoetis by 0.4% during the first quarter. TCV Trust & Wealth Management Inc. now owns 78,747 shares of the company's stock worth $12,966,000 after purchasing an additional 346 shares during the period. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. lifted its holdings in shares of Zoetis by 4.2% during the 1st quarter. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. now owns 68,508 shares of the company's stock valued at $11,183,000 after purchasing an additional 2,748 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Lafayette Investments Inc. grew its position in shares of Zoetis by 68.2% in the 1st quarter. Lafayette Investments Inc. now owns 3,050 shares of the company's stock valued at $502,000 after purchasing an additional 1,237 shares during the period. 92.80% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research analysts have weighed in on the stock. Wall Street Zen raised shares of Zoetis from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research note on Friday, March 7th. Piper Sandler raised their price objective on shares of Zoetis from $205.00 to $210.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a report on Monday, May 12th. Stifel Nicolaus lowered shares of Zoetis from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating and reduced their target price for the stock from $165.00 to $160.00 in a research note on Wednesday, June 18th. Finally, UBS Group dropped their price target on Zoetis from $189.00 to $170.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, May 7th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, seven have assigned a buy rating and two have issued a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of "Buy" and an average price target of $212.13.

Zoetis Stock Up 0.2%

Shares of ZTS stock opened at $156.17 on Friday. The firm's fifty day moving average price is $160.40 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $162.63. The company has a current ratio of 1.74, a quick ratio of 1.04 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.12. Zoetis Inc. has a 1 year low of $139.70 and a 1 year high of $200.33. The firm has a market capitalization of $69.53 billion, a P/E ratio of 28.04, a PEG ratio of 2.59 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 return on equity of 55.48% and a net margin of 27.12%. The company had revenue of $2.22 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $2.20 billion. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $1.38 EPS. Zoetis's revenue for the quarter was up 1.4% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities analysts predict that Zoetis Inc. will post 6.07 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Zoetis Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, September 3rd. Investors of record on Friday, July 18th will be paid a $0.50 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Friday, July 18th. This represents a $2.00 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.28%. Zoetis's dividend payout ratio is presently 35.91%.

Insider Activity at Zoetis

In other news, EVP Roxanne Lagano sold 652 shares of the company's 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 sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 15,129 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $2,571,930. This represents a 4.13% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. 0.18% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

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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