Zoetis Inc. (NYSE:ZTS) Shares Acquired by Czech National Bank

Czech National Bank lifted its stake in Zoetis Inc. (NYSE:ZTS - Free Report) by 5.1% in the 1st quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 102,850 shares of the company's stock after purchasing an additional 5,028 shares during the quarter. Czech National Bank's holdings in Zoetis were worth $16,934,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of ZTS. Callahan Advisors LLC increased its holdings in Zoetis by 90.4% in the 4th quarter. Callahan Advisors LLC now owns 13,105 shares of the company's stock worth $2,135,000 after buying an additional 6,221 shares during the period. CIBC Asset Management Inc increased its position in shares of Zoetis by 24.1% in the fourth quarter. CIBC Asset Management Inc now owns 237,369 shares of the company's stock valued at $38,617,000 after buying an additional 46,050 shares in the last quarter. Schroder Investment Management Group lifted its position in shares of Zoetis by 2.6% during the 4th quarter. Schroder Investment Management Group now owns 245,726 shares of the company's stock valued at $40,036,000 after buying an additional 6,169 shares in the last quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. boosted its holdings in Zoetis by 0.3% in the 4th quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 41,366,877 shares of the company's stock worth $6,739,905,000 after buying an additional 120,158 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Alberta Investment Management Corp increased its stake in Zoetis by 2,050.0% during the 4th quarter. Alberta Investment Management Corp now owns 30,100 shares of the company's stock worth $4,904,000 after buying an additional 28,700 shares in the last quarter. 92.80% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of analysts have recently issued reports on the company. 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. Morgan Stanley decreased their price objective on Zoetis from $243.00 to $238.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a report on Friday, February 14th. Wall Street Zen raised Zoetis from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research note on Friday, March 7th. Stifel Nicolaus cut their target price on Zoetis from $180.00 to $165.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research note on Monday, April 14th. Finally, Barclays lifted their price target on Zoetis from $242.00 to $244.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a report on Friday, February 14th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating, eight have issued a buy rating and two have issued a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Zoetis has a consensus rating of "Buy" and an average target price of $212.75.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, Director Willie M. Reed sold 1,210 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, March 11th. The shares were sold at an average price of $166.14, for a total value of $201,029.40. Following the sale, the director now owns 11,245 shares of the company's stock, valued at $1,868,244.30. This trade represents a 9.71% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, EVP Roxanne Lagano sold 652 shares of the business'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 transaction of $110,840.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 15,129 shares of the company's stock, valued at $2,571,930. This trade represents a 4.13% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 2,188 shares of company stock worth $367,289 over the last 90 days. Corporate insiders own 0.18% of the company's stock.

Zoetis Stock Performance

NYSE ZTS remained flat at $168.59 during trading hours on Thursday. 2,773,945 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 2,541,898. The firm has a fifty day moving average price of $157.24 and a 200-day moving average price of $164.41. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.09, a current ratio of 1.75 and a quick ratio of 1.08. Zoetis Inc. has a 52 week low of $139.70 and a 52 week high of $200.33. The company has a market capitalization of $75.06 billion, a PE ratio of 30.82, a P/E/G ratio of 2.78 and a beta of 0.94.

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, beating the consensus estimate of $1.40 by $0.08. Zoetis had a return on equity of 53.82% and a net margin of 26.86%. The firm 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 business earned $1.38 EPS. The company's quarterly revenue was up 1.4% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, sell-side analysts predict that Zoetis Inc. will post 6.07 EPS for the current year.

Zoetis Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, September 3rd. Shareholders of record on Friday, July 18th will be given a $0.50 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, July 18th. This represents a $2.00 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.19%. Zoetis's dividend payout ratio is presently 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.