Zoetis Inc. $ZTS Position Lessened by Candriam S.C.A.

Key Points

• Candriam S.C.A. cut its Zoetis position by 84.5% in the third quarter, selling 401,533 shares and ending the period with 73,402 shares valued at about $5.1 million. Other institutions increased holdings; institutional investors collectively owned 92.8% of the stock.
• Zoetis beat quarterly earnings and revenue estimates, reporting EPS of $1.75 versus $1.51 expected and revenue of $2.39 billion versus $2.30 billion. Revenue nevertheless declined 1.3% year over year.
• The company announced a quarterly dividend of $0.53 per share, equivalent to an annualized yield of 2.6%. Analysts’ consensus rating was “Hold,” with an average price target of $101.25.

Candriam S.C.A. lessened its position in Zoetis Inc. (NYSE:ZTS - Free Report) by 84.5% during the third quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 73,402 shares of the company's stock after selling 401,533 shares during the period. Candriam S.C.A.'s holdings in Zoetis were worth $5,144,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of the company. Uhlmann Price Securities LLC lifted its holdings in Zoetis by 77.9% in the 3rd quarter. Uhlmann Price Securities LLC now owns 5,158 shares of the company's stock valued at $360,000 after acquiring an additional 2,258 shares during the last quarter. Ethic Inc. boosted its position in shares of Zoetis by 56.9% during the 3rd quarter. Ethic Inc. now owns 64,000 shares of the company's stock valued at $4,469,000 after purchasing an additional 23,204 shares in the last quarter. 180 Wealth Advisors LLC grew its stake in shares of Zoetis by 23.1% in the 3rd quarter. 180 Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 4,289 shares of the company's stock worth $299,000 after purchasing an additional 805 shares during the last quarter. Buckhead Capital Management LLC grew its stake in shares of Zoetis by 9.6% in the 3rd quarter. Buckhead Capital Management LLC now owns 44,359 shares of the company's stock worth $3,098,000 after purchasing an additional 3,890 shares during the last quarter. Finally, StoneX Group Inc. grew its stake in shares of Zoetis by 7.8% in the 3rd quarter. StoneX Group Inc. now owns 4,004 shares of the company's stock worth $286,000 after purchasing an additional 291 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 92.80% of the company's stock.

Zoetis Price Performance

Shares of ZTS opened at $82.48 on Wednesday. The business's 50-day moving average is $75.88 and its 200-day moving average is $92.18. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.51, a current ratio of 2.35 and a quick ratio of 1.40. The company has a market capitalization of $33.51 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 12.42, a P/E/G ratio of 1.19 and a beta of 0.67. Zoetis Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $68.77 and a fifty-two week high of $132.49.

Zoetis (NYSE:ZTS - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, November 5th. The company reported $1.75 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $1.51 by $0.24. Zoetis had a net margin of 26.15% and a return on equity of 85.90%. The company had revenue of $2.39 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.30 billion. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $1.70 EPS. The company's revenue for the quarter was down 1.3% on a year-over-year basis. Equities research analysts expect that Zoetis Inc. will post 6.29 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Zoetis Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, December 1st. Stockholders of record on Friday, October 30th will be issued a dividend of $0.53 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, October 30th. This represents a $2.12 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.6%. Zoetis's dividend payout ratio is currently 36.05%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research firms recently commented on ZTS. BNP Paribas Exane dropped their target price on shares of Zoetis from $146.00 to $110.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, August 11th. Zacks Research upgraded shares of Zoetis from a "strong sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Monday, October 26th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reduced their target price on shares of Zoetis from $130.00 to $115.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a report on Friday, August 7th. Weiss Ratings upgraded shares of Zoetis from a "sell (d)" rating to a "sell (d+)" rating in a research report on Thursday, October 29th. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus dropped their price target on Zoetis from $85.00 to $80.00 and set a "hold" rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, August 20th. Eight investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, twelve have issued a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, Zoetis currently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $101.25.

Zoetis Profile

Zoetis is an animal health company that discovers, develops, manufactures and markets medicines, vaccines, diagnostic products and other services for animals. Its products support both companion animals, such as dogs and cats, and livestock, including cattle, pigs, poultry, sheep and fish. The company's offerings include treatments for pain, infections and skin conditions, as well as vaccines, parasiticides, diagnostic tools and genetic testing services. Zoetis serves veterinarians, livestock producers and other animal health professionals around the world.

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