The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company Has $29.07 Million Position in Zoetis Inc. $ZTS

Key Points

• The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company reduced its Zoetis stake by 14.4% in the first quarter, leaving it with 245,963 shares valued at approximately $29.1 million. Institutional investors collectively own 92.8% of the company.
• Analyst sentiment is mixed: Zoetis has an average “Hold” rating and a consensus price target of $118.33 after several firms lowered their targets, while company directors bought a combined 11,650 shares over the past 90 days.
• Zoetis shares opened at $77.37, near their 12-month low, after the company missed quarterly earnings and revenue estimates. The company declared a quarterly dividend of $0.53 per share, equivalent to a 2.7% annual yield.

The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company lessened its stake in Zoetis Inc. (NYSE:ZTS - Free Report) by 14.4% in the 1st quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 245,963 shares of the company's stock after selling 41,479 shares during the period. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company owned 0.06% of Zoetis worth $29,075,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other large investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Prosperity Bancshares Inc acquired a new stake in shares of Zoetis in the 4th quarter valued at $25,000. Cassaday & Co Wealth Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of Zoetis during the first quarter valued at $28,000. Lodestone Wealth Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of Zoetis during the fourth quarter valued at $30,000. Elyxium Wealth LLC bought a new position in Zoetis in the fourth quarter valued at about $32,000. Finally, Root Financial Partners LLC boosted its holdings in Zoetis by 66.5% in the first quarter. Root Financial Partners LLC now owns 258 shares of the company's stock valued at $30,000 after acquiring an additional 103 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 92.80% of the company's stock.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, Director Frank A. Damelio bought 6,650 shares of the stock in a transaction on Wednesday, May 13th. The stock was purchased at an average price of $75.39 per share, with a total value of $501,343.50. Following the completion of the purchase, the director owned 21,458 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $1,617,718.62. This trade represents a 44.91% increase in their ownership of the stock. The purchase was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Also, Director Paul Bisaro bought 2,000 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Wednesday, May 13th. The stock was purchased at an average price of $75.88 per share, for a total transaction of $151,760.00. Following the completion of the acquisition, the director owned 27,862 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $2,114,168.56. This trade represents a 7.73% increase in their position. The SEC filing for this purchase provides additional information. Insiders have bought 11,650 shares of company stock valued at $886,384 in the last 90 days. 0.22% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Analyst Ratings Changes

ZTS has been the subject of several recent research reports. Citigroup dropped their price objective on Zoetis from $145.00 to $112.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a report on Monday, May 18th. Wall Street Zen lowered shares of Zoetis from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Saturday, May 2nd. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lowered their price target on shares of Zoetis from $190.00 to $130.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a research report on Friday, May 8th. Stifel Nicolaus dropped their price target on shares of Zoetis from $95.00 to $85.00 and set a "hold" rating for the company in a research note on Friday, June 26th. Finally, UBS Group cut their price objective on shares of Zoetis from $99.00 to $85.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a report on Monday. Eight analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, eight have issued a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $118.33.

Zoetis Stock Up 1.8%

Shares of Zoetis stock opened at $77.37 on Friday. The business has a fifty day simple moving average of $77.05 and a 200 day simple moving average of $102.49. The stock has a market cap of $32.44 billion, a PE ratio of 12.83, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.19 and a beta of 0.75. 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 12 month low of $71.47 and a 12 month high of $160.48.

Zoetis (NYSE:ZTS - Get Free Report) last released 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). The company had revenue of $2.26 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.30 billion. Zoetis had a net margin of 27.80% and a return on equity of 66.85%. The company's quarterly revenue was up 2.9% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $1.48 EPS. Zoetis has set its FY 2026 guidance at 6.850-7.000 EPS. Research analysts predict that Zoetis Inc. will post 6.87 EPS for the current year.

Zoetis Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, September 1st. Investors of record on Monday, July 20th will be given a $0.53 dividend. This represents a $2.12 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.7%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, July 20th. Zoetis's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 35.16%.

About Zoetis

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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