VELA Investment Management LLC Raises Stock Position in Zoetis Inc. (NYSE:ZTS)

VELA Investment Management LLC boosted its position in shares of Zoetis Inc. (NYSE:ZTS - Free Report) by 42.7% during the first quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 12,777 shares of the company's stock after purchasing an additional 3,823 shares during the period. VELA Investment Management LLC's holdings in Zoetis were worth $2,104,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of ZTS. Rakuten Securities Inc. increased its position 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 acquired a new stake in shares of Zoetis during the fourth quarter valued at about $30,000. Murphy & Mullick Capital Management Corp acquired a new stake in shares of Zoetis during the fourth quarter valued at about $44,000. Sound Income Strategies LLC increased its position 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 increased its position 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. 92.80% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of brokerages recently weighed in on ZTS. UBS Group dropped 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. Stifel Nicolaus cut shares of Zoetis from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating and dropped their price objective for the company from $165.00 to $160.00 in a report on Wednesday, June 18th. Finally, 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. 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 stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of "Buy" and a consensus price target of $212.13.

Zoetis Stock Up 0.1%

Zoetis stock traded up $0.11 during trading on Friday, reaching $159.19. The stock had a trading volume of 1,375,164 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,572,771. Zoetis Inc. has a 52-week low of $139.70 and a 52-week high of $200.33. The business has a 50 day moving average price of $161.16 and a 200 day moving average price of $162.08. 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 stock has a market cap of $70.87 billion, a PE ratio of 28.58, a P/E/G ratio of 2.64 and a beta of 0.91.

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

Zoetis Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed 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. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, July 18th. This represents a $2.00 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.26%. Zoetis's dividend payout ratio is presently 35.91%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Zoetis

In other news, EVP Roxanne Lagano sold 652 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, June 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $170.00, for a total transaction of $110,840.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president owned 15,129 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,571,930. The trade was a 4.13% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Corporate insiders own 0.16% of the company's stock.

Zoetis 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.