UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC Buys 182,472 Shares of Zoetis Inc. (NYSE:ZTS)

UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC boosted its stake in Zoetis Inc. (NYSE:ZTS - Free Report) by 4.7% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 4,078,578 shares of the company's stock after purchasing an additional 182,472 shares during the quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC owned about 0.90% of Zoetis worth $664,523,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other large investors have also bought and sold shares of ZTS. Atlantic Edge Private Wealth Management LLC grew its holdings in Zoetis by 482.8% in the fourth quarter. Atlantic Edge Private Wealth Management LLC now owns 169 shares of the company's stock worth $28,000 after purchasing an additional 140 shares during the period. Rakuten Securities Inc. grew its holdings in Zoetis by 5,533.3% in the fourth quarter. Rakuten Securities Inc. now owns 169 shares of the company's stock worth $28,000 after purchasing an additional 166 shares during the period. Navigoe LLC acquired a new position in shares of Zoetis during the fourth quarter valued at about $30,000. Murphy & Mullick Capital Management Corp acquired a new position in shares of Zoetis during the fourth quarter valued at about $44,000. Finally, Asset Planning Inc acquired a new position in shares of Zoetis during the fourth quarter valued at about $58,000. 92.80% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research analysts have recently issued reports on the stock. Stifel Nicolaus reduced their price objective on shares of Zoetis from $180.00 to $165.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a report on Monday, April 14th. Barclays lifted their price objective on shares of Zoetis from $242.00 to $244.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a report on Friday, February 14th. Piper Sandler lifted their price objective on shares of Zoetis from $205.00 to $210.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a report on Monday, May 12th. UBS Group reduced their price objective on shares of Zoetis from $189.00 to $170.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, May 7th. Finally, Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of Zoetis from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a report on Friday, March 7th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating, eight have issued a buy rating and two have given a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, Zoetis currently has an average rating of "Buy" and an average price target of $212.75.

Zoetis Stock Up 0.6%

Zoetis stock traded up $0.95 during midday trading on Friday, hitting $162.92. 2,732,205 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 2,526,123. Zoetis Inc. has a 52-week low of $139.70 and a 52-week high of $200.33. The stock has a market capitalization of $72.53 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 29.78, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.78 and a beta of 0.94. The business's 50-day moving average price is $156.48 and its 200-day moving average price is $164.88. The company has a quick ratio of 1.08, a current ratio of 1.75 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.09.

Zoetis (NYSE:ZTS - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, May 6th. The company reported $1.48 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.40 by $0.08. Zoetis had a net margin of 26.86% and a return on equity of 53.82%. The business had revenue of $2.22 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $2.20 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned $1.38 earnings per share. The firm's revenue for the quarter was up 1.4% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, research analysts expect that Zoetis Inc. will post 6.07 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Zoetis Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, September 3rd. Investors of record on Friday, July 18th will be issued a dividend of $0.50 per share. This represents a $2.00 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.23%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, July 18th. Zoetis's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 35.91%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Zoetis news, EVP Roxanne Lagano sold 326 shares of Zoetis stock in a transaction dated Monday, March 10th. The shares were sold at an average price of $170.00, for a total value of $55,420.00. Following the sale, the executive vice president now owns 15,781 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $2,682,770. The trade was a 2.02% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, Director Willie M. Reed sold 1,210 shares of Zoetis stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, March 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $166.14, for a total transaction of $201,029.40. Following the completion of the sale, the director now directly owns 11,245 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,868,244.30. This represents a 9.71% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.18% of the stock is owned by corporate 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.