TD Asset Management Inc Sells 34,560 Shares of Zoetis Inc. (NYSE:ZTS)

Key Points

• TD Asset Management Inc reduced its stake in Zoetis Inc. by selling 34,560 shares, bringing its ownership down to 1,583,749 shares, valued at approximately $260.76 million.
• Various institutional investors, including Cornerstone Planning Group LLC and Migdal Insurance & Financial Holdings Ltd., have recently increased their holdings in Zoetis, showcasing ongoing interest in the company.
• Zoetis reported $1.48 EPS for the last quarter, exceeding expectations, with a 1.32% dividend yield announced for shareholders of record.

TD Asset Management Inc decreased its holdings in shares of Zoetis Inc. (NYSE:ZTS - Free Report) by 2.1% in the first quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 1,583,749 shares of the company's stock after selling 34,560 shares during the period. TD Asset Management Inc owned 0.35% of Zoetis worth $260,764,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the business. Norges Bank bought a new stake in shares of Zoetis during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $824,321,000. Wellington Management Group LLP increased its position in shares of Zoetis by 78.5% during the fourth quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 6,958,543 shares of the company's stock valued at $1,133,755,000 after acquiring an additional 3,059,255 shares in the last quarter. Sarasin & Partners LLP bought a new stake in shares of Zoetis during the first quarter valued at approximately $339,111,000. GAMMA Investing LLC increased its position in shares of Zoetis by 14,731.3% during the first quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 1,759,285 shares of the company's stock valued at $289,666,000 after acquiring an additional 1,747,423 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Capital Research Global Investors bought a new stake in shares of Zoetis during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $178,688,000. Institutional investors own 92.80% of the company's stock.

Zoetis Price Performance

ZTS stock traded down $1.47 during mid-day trading on Monday, hitting $150.65. The company had a trading volume of 2,261,077 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,984,698. The company has a market capitalization of $67.07 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 25.27, a P/E/G ratio of 2.52 and a beta of 0.91. Zoetis Inc. has a 12-month low of $139.70 and a 12-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 50-day moving average price of $159.91 and a 200 day moving average price of $160.96.

Zoetis (NYSE:ZTS - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, May 6th. The company reported $1.48 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.40 by $0.08. The business had revenue of $2.22 billion for 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% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company earned $1.38 EPS. On average, research analysts anticipate that Zoetis Inc. will post 6.07 earnings per share for the current year.

Zoetis Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, September 3rd. Stockholders of record on Friday, July 18th will be given a dividend of $0.50 per share. This represents a $2.00 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.33%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, July 18th. Zoetis's dividend payout ratio is 35.91%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities research analysts have commented on ZTS shares. Leerink Partnrs downgraded shares of Zoetis from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Thursday, July 17th. Piper Sandler lifted their target price on shares of Zoetis from $205.00 to $210.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research report on Monday, May 12th. UBS Group cut their target price on shares of Zoetis from $189.00 to $170.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, May 7th. Leerink Partners downgraded shares of Zoetis from an "outperform" rating to a "market perform" rating and cut their price objective for the company from $180.00 to $155.00 in a research report on Thursday, July 17th. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus downgraded shares of Zoetis from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating and cut their price objective for the company from $165.00 to $160.00 in a research report on Wednesday, June 18th. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, six have assigned a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $204.63.

Insider Activity

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 transaction of $110,840.00. Following the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 15,129 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,571,930. This represents a 4.13% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Corporate insiders own 0.16% of the company's stock.

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.