Victory Capital Management Inc. Decreases Holdings in Zoetis Inc. (NYSE:ZTS)

Victory Capital Management Inc. trimmed its position in shares of Zoetis Inc. (NYSE:ZTS - Free Report) by 50.6% during the 1st quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 164,068 shares of the company's stock after selling 168,051 shares during the period. Victory Capital Management Inc.'s holdings in Zoetis were worth $27,014,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds have also added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Navigoe LLC purchased a new position in Zoetis during the fourth quarter worth about $30,000. Cornerstone Planning Group LLC grew its stake in Zoetis by 79.3% in the 1st quarter. Cornerstone Planning Group LLC now owns 199 shares of the company's stock valued at $30,000 after acquiring an additional 88 shares during the last quarter. Murphy & Mullick Capital Management Corp acquired a new stake in Zoetis in the 4th quarter valued at about $44,000. Sound Income Strategies LLC lifted its holdings in Zoetis by 141.4% in the 1st quarter. Sound Income Strategies LLC now owns 280 shares of the company's stock valued at $46,000 after purchasing an additional 164 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Bfsg LLC lifted its holdings in Zoetis by 614.6% in the 1st quarter. Bfsg LLC now owns 293 shares of the company's stock valued at $48,000 after purchasing an additional 252 shares in the last quarter. 92.80% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Insider Activity at Zoetis

In related news, EVP Roxanne Lagano sold 652 shares of Zoetis stock in a transaction on Tuesday, June 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $170.00, for a total value of $110,840.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president owned 15,129 shares of the company's stock, valued at $2,571,930. The trade was a 4.13% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Insiders own 0.16% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

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

Zoetis Stock Performance

NYSE:ZTS opened at $147.31 on Tuesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.12, a quick ratio of 1.04 and a current ratio of 1.74. Zoetis Inc. has a 52-week low of $139.70 and a 52-week high of $200.33. The firm has a market cap of $65.59 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 24.68, a PEG ratio of 2.46 and a beta of 0.91. The business's fifty day moving average is $160.77 and its 200 day moving average is $161.42.

Zoetis (NYSE:ZTS - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data 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. Zoetis had a return on equity of 55.48% and a net margin of 27.12%. The firm had revenue of $2.22 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $2.20 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the business earned $1.38 EPS. The company's revenue for the quarter was up 1.4% compared to the same quarter last year. Research analysts predict that Zoetis Inc. will post 6.07 EPS for the current year.

Zoetis Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, September 3rd. Shareholders of record on Friday, July 18th will be issued a $0.50 dividend. This represents a $2.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.36%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, July 18th. Zoetis's payout ratio is 35.91%.

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.

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