Vontobel Holding Ltd. Raises Stock Holdings in Zoetis Inc. (NYSE:ZTS)

Vontobel Holding Ltd. increased its holdings in Zoetis Inc. (NYSE:ZTS - Free Report) by 6.9% in the first quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 1,699,047 shares of the company's stock after purchasing an additional 109,522 shares during the quarter. Zoetis accounts for about 1.0% of Vontobel Holding Ltd.'s holdings, making the stock its 26th largest holding. Vontobel Holding Ltd. owned 0.38% of Zoetis worth $279,748,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of ZTS. Rakuten Securities Inc. raised its stake in shares of Zoetis by 5,533.3% during the 4th quarter. Rakuten Securities Inc. now owns 169 shares of the company's stock worth $28,000 after buying an additional 166 shares during the period. Navigoe LLC purchased a new stake in Zoetis in the 4th quarter worth $30,000. Murphy & Mullick Capital Management Corp acquired a new position in Zoetis during the fourth quarter worth $44,000. Sound Income Strategies LLC lifted its holdings in 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 purchasing an additional 164 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Bfsg LLC grew its position in shares of Zoetis by 614.6% in the first quarter. Bfsg LLC now owns 293 shares of the company's stock valued at $48,000 after purchasing an additional 252 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 92.80% of the company's stock.

Insider Activity

In related news, EVP Roxanne Lagano sold 652 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred 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 transaction, 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 ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. 0.18% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Zoetis Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:ZTS traded down $0.10 during midday trading on Wednesday, hitting $159.09. The company had a trading volume of 2,128,431 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,569,235. Zoetis Inc. has a twelve month low of $139.70 and a twelve month high of $200.33. The stock has a market cap of $70.83 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 28.56, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.64 and a beta of 0.91. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.12, a current ratio of 1.74 and a quick ratio of 1.04. The business's 50-day simple moving average is $160.76 and its 200-day simple moving average is $162.34.

Zoetis (NYSE:ZTS - Get Free Report) last issued its 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 business had revenue of $2.22 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.20 billion. Zoetis had a return on equity of 55.48% and a net margin of 27.12%. The company's revenue for the quarter was up 1.4% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the company earned $1.38 EPS. On average, research analysts predict that Zoetis Inc. will post 6.07 earnings per share for the current year.

Zoetis Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, September 3rd. Stockholders of record on Friday, July 18th will be paid a $0.50 dividend. 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 (DPR) is 35.91%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research firms recently weighed in on ZTS. Stifel Nicolaus downgraded shares of Zoetis from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating and reduced their price target for the stock from $165.00 to $160.00 in a research report on Wednesday, June 18th. Piper Sandler increased their target price on Zoetis from $205.00 to $210.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a report on Monday, May 12th. UBS Group lowered their price target on Zoetis from $189.00 to $170.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, May 7th. Finally, Wall Street Zen raised Zoetis from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research note on Friday, March 7th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, seven have given a buy rating and two have assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of "Buy" and a consensus target price of $212.13.

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.