Williams Jones Wealth Management LLC. Decreases Stock Holdings in Zoetis Inc. (NYSE:ZTS)

Williams Jones Wealth Management LLC. lessened its stake in shares of Zoetis Inc. (NYSE:ZTS - Free Report) by 2.6% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 958,895 shares of the company's stock after selling 25,882 shares during the quarter. Zoetis comprises about 1.9% of Williams Jones Wealth Management LLC.'s investment portfolio, making the stock its 12th biggest holding. Williams Jones Wealth Management LLC. owned 0.21% of Zoetis worth $156,233,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Atlantic Edge Private Wealth Management LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Zoetis by 482.8% during the 4th quarter. Atlantic Edge Private Wealth Management LLC now owns 169 shares of the company's stock valued at $28,000 after acquiring an additional 140 shares during the last quarter. Rakuten Securities Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of Zoetis by 5,533.3% during the 4th 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 purchased a new stake in shares of Zoetis during the 4th quarter valued at about $30,000. Murphy & Mullick Capital Management Corp purchased a new stake in shares of Zoetis during the 4th quarter valued at about $44,000. Finally, Asset Planning Inc purchased a new stake in shares of Zoetis during the 4th quarter valued at about $58,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 92.80% of the company's stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several analysts recently issued reports on ZTS shares. Barclays boosted their target price on shares of Zoetis from $242.00 to $244.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research report on Friday, February 14th. Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of Zoetis from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research report on Friday, March 7th. UBS Group cut their target price on shares of Zoetis from $189.00 to $170.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, May 7th. Morgan Stanley cut their target price on shares of Zoetis from $243.00 to $238.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a research report on Friday, February 14th. Finally, Piper Sandler boosted their target price on shares of Zoetis from $205.00 to $210.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research report on Monday, May 12th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating, eight have given a buy rating and two have assigned a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, Zoetis has an average rating of "Buy" and an average price target of $212.75.

Insider Buying and Selling at Zoetis

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

Zoetis Price Performance

NYSE:ZTS traded up $0.95 during trading hours on Friday, hitting $162.92. 2,732,205 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 2,528,663. 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 Inc. has a 1 year low of $139.70 and a 1 year high of $200.33. The company has a market cap 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 stock has a 50 day moving average price of $156.48 and a 200 day moving average price of $164.84.

Zoetis (NYSE:ZTS - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, May 6th. The company reported $1.48 earnings per share for the quarter, beating 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 the consensus estimate of $2.20 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm earned $1.38 earnings per share. The company's revenue for the quarter was up 1.4% on a year-over-year basis. Sell-side analysts forecast that Zoetis Inc. will post 6.07 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Zoetis Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, September 3rd. Shareholders 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 of this dividend is Friday, July 18th. Zoetis's dividend payout ratio is currently 35.91%.

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.