Public Employees Retirement System of Ohio Cuts Stake in Zoetis Inc. (NYSE:ZTS)

Public Employees Retirement System of Ohio reduced its stake in shares of Zoetis Inc. (NYSE:ZTS - Free Report) by 4.8% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 196,907 shares of the company's stock after selling 9,897 shares during the quarter. Public Employees Retirement System of Ohio's holdings in Zoetis were worth $32,082,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other large investors have also recently modified their holdings of ZTS. Mission Wealth Management LP grew its position in Zoetis by 2.0% during the 4th quarter. Mission Wealth Management LP now owns 2,938 shares of the company's stock worth $479,000 after acquiring an additional 59 shares during the last quarter. VeraBank N.A. grew its stake in shares of Zoetis by 4.1% in the fourth quarter. VeraBank N.A. now owns 1,562 shares of the company's stock worth $254,000 after purchasing an additional 62 shares during the last quarter. HUB Investment Partners LLC increased its holdings in Zoetis by 4.7% during the 4th quarter. HUB Investment Partners LLC now owns 1,373 shares of the company's stock valued at $224,000 after purchasing an additional 62 shares during the period. Coppell Advisory Solutions LLC raised its position in Zoetis by 18.0% during the 4th quarter. Coppell Advisory Solutions LLC now owns 420 shares of the company's stock valued at $68,000 after purchasing an additional 64 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Deseret Mutual Benefit Administrators lifted its holdings in Zoetis by 6.6% in the 4th quarter. Deseret Mutual Benefit Administrators now owns 1,045 shares of the company's stock worth $170,000 after buying an additional 65 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 92.80% of the company's stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several analysts have commented on the stock. Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of Zoetis from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a report on Friday, March 7th. UBS Group dropped their price target on Zoetis from $189.00 to $170.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, May 7th. Barclays upped their price target on Zoetis from $242.00 to $244.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research note on Friday, February 14th. Morgan Stanley lowered their price objective on 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 upped their target price on shares of Zoetis from $205.00 to $210.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research report on Monday, May 12th. One analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating, eight have assigned a buy rating and two have given a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of "Buy" and a consensus price target of $212.75.

Insider Transactions at Zoetis

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

Zoetis Stock Down 0.6%

Shares of NYSE:ZTS traded down $1.06 on Wednesday, hitting $165.20. 1,723,724 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 2,524,637. The stock has a 50 day simple moving average of $156.53 and a 200-day simple moving average of $164.69. The company has a quick ratio of 1.08, a current ratio of 1.75 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.09. The company has a market cap of $73.55 billion, a PE ratio of 30.20, a PEG ratio of 2.78 and a beta of 0.94. Zoetis Inc. has a 52 week low of $139.70 and a 52 week high of $200.33.

Zoetis (NYSE:ZTS - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, May 6th. The company reported $1.48 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $1.40 by $0.08. The business had revenue of $2.22 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.20 billion. Zoetis had a net margin of 26.86% and a return on equity of 53.82%. Zoetis's revenue was up 1.4% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the business earned $1.38 EPS. As a group, research analysts expect that Zoetis Inc. will post 6.07 earnings per share for the current year.

Zoetis Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, September 3rd. Investors 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 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.21%. Zoetis's payout ratio is 35.91%.

Zoetis Company 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.