Mediolanum International Funds Ltd Has $32.05 Million Holdings in Zoetis Inc. (NYSE:ZTS)

Key Points

• Mediolanum International Funds Ltd reduced its stake in Zoetis Inc. by 1.5%, owning 196,509 shares valued at approximately $32 million.
• Zoetis recently announced a quarterly dividend of $0.50 per share, with a yield of 1.32% and a payout ratio of 35.91%.
• The stock currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" among analysts, with a target price of around $204.63.

Mediolanum International Funds Ltd trimmed its position in shares of Zoetis Inc. (NYSE:ZTS - Free Report) by 1.5% in the first quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 196,509 shares of the company's stock after selling 3,077 shares during the period. Mediolanum International Funds Ltd's holdings in Zoetis were worth $32,053,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Geode Capital Management LLC grew its stake in shares of Zoetis by 1.8% in the fourth quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 10,617,897 shares of the company's stock worth $1,726,075,000 after purchasing an additional 190,137 shares in the last quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP lifted its holdings in Zoetis by 78.5% in the fourth quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 6,958,543 shares of the company's stock worth $1,133,755,000 after purchasing an additional 3,059,255 shares during the period. Northern Trust Corp grew its position in Zoetis by 13.3% in the 4th quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 6,426,394 shares of the company's stock valued at $1,047,052,000 after buying an additional 755,893 shares in the last quarter. Norges Bank bought a new stake in shares of Zoetis during the 4th quarter worth about $824,321,000. Finally, Unisphere Establishment lifted its stake in shares of Zoetis by 7.3% in the 4th quarter. Unisphere Establishment now owns 4,800,000 shares of the company's stock worth $782,064,000 after acquiring an additional 325,000 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 92.80% of the company's stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

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

Insider Activity at Zoetis

In other news, EVP Roxanne Lagano sold 652 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, June 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $170.00, for a total value of $110,840.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president owned 15,129 shares of the company's stock, 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 Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Company insiders own 0.16% of the company's stock.

Zoetis Stock Performance

NYSE ZTS traded down $1.47 on Monday, hitting $150.65. 2,261,077 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 3,046,324. 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 fifty day moving average is $159.91 and its 200 day moving average is $160.96. 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 $67.07 billion, a PE ratio of 27.05, a P/E/G ratio of 2.52 and a beta of 0.91.

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

Zoetis Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, September 3rd. Stockholders of record on Friday, July 18th will be issued a $0.50 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, July 18th. This represents a $2.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.33%. Zoetis's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 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.