Zoetis Inc. $ZTS Shares Acquired by South Dakota Investment Council

Key Points

• South Dakota Investment Council increased its Zoetis stake by 77.2% in the first quarter, acquiring 96,234 additional shares and bringing its holdings to 220,819 shares worth approximately $26.1 million. Institutional investors collectively own 92.8% of the company.
• Analyst sentiment is mixed, with eight Buy, eight Hold, and one Sell rating; the consensus rating is Hold with an average price target of $118.33. Zoetis shares opened at $77.89, near their 12-month low of $71.47 and well below the 12-month high of $160.48.
• Zoetis reported quarterly revenue of $2.26 billion and EPS of $1.53, both below analyst expectations, though revenue rose 2.9% year over year. The company declared a quarterly dividend of $0.53 per share, representing a 2.7% annualized yield.

South Dakota Investment Council lifted its stake in Zoetis Inc. (NYSE:ZTS - Free Report) by 77.2% during the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the SEC. The fund owned 220,819 shares of the company's stock after acquiring an additional 96,234 shares during the quarter. South Dakota Investment Council owned 0.05% of Zoetis worth $26,103,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds have also recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Prosperity Bancshares Inc purchased a new stake in Zoetis in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $25,000. Cassaday & Co Wealth Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of Zoetis during the first quarter worth $28,000. Lodestone Wealth Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of Zoetis during the fourth quarter worth $30,000. Elyxium Wealth LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Zoetis in the fourth quarter valued at $32,000. Finally, Root Financial Partners LLC grew its stake in shares of Zoetis by 66.5% in the first quarter. Root Financial Partners LLC now owns 258 shares of the company's stock valued at $30,000 after buying an additional 103 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 92.80% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities analysts recently issued reports on the company. Citigroup decreased their target price on Zoetis from $145.00 to $112.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, May 18th. Weiss Ratings downgraded Zoetis from a "sell (d+)" rating to a "sell (d)" rating in a research report on Friday, June 12th. HSBC cut their price target on shares of Zoetis from $140.00 to $95.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, July 6th. Morgan Stanley reduced their price target on shares of Zoetis from $115.00 to $99.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, July 22nd. Finally, Wall Street Zen lowered shares of Zoetis from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Saturday, May 2nd. Eight investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, eight have issued a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Zoetis has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $118.33.

Insider Transactions at Zoetis

In other news, Director Michael B. Mccallister purchased 3,000 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, May 11th. The stock was bought at an average price of $77.76 per share, for a total transaction of $233,280.00. Following the completion of the purchase, the director directly owned 24,524 shares of the company's stock, valued at $1,906,986.24. The trade was a 13.94% increase in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, Director Frank A. Damelio purchased 6,650 shares of the stock in a transaction on Wednesday, May 13th. The shares were purchased at an average price of $75.39 per share, with a total value of $501,343.50. Following the acquisition, the director directly owned 21,458 shares in the company, valued at $1,617,718.62. This represents a 44.91% increase in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this purchase is available in the SEC filing. Over the last ninety days, insiders purchased 11,650 shares of company stock valued at $886,384. 0.22% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Zoetis Stock Up 0.5%

Shares of NYSE ZTS opened at $77.89 on Thursday. The stock has a market cap of $32.66 billion, a P/E ratio of 12.92, a PEG ratio of 1.21 and a beta of 0.75. The business's fifty day simple moving average is $77.21 and its 200-day simple moving average is $103.02. Zoetis Inc. has a 12-month low of $71.47 and a 12-month high of $160.48. The company has a current ratio of 3.15, a quick ratio of 1.91 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.80.

Zoetis (NYSE:ZTS - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Thursday, May 7th. The company reported $1.53 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.60 by ($0.07). Zoetis had a return on equity of 66.85% and a net margin of 27.80%.The company had revenue of $2.26 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.30 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned $1.48 earnings per share. The company's revenue for the quarter was up 2.9% compared to the same quarter last year. Zoetis has set its FY 2026 guidance at 6.850-7.000 EPS. As a group, equities analysts predict that Zoetis Inc. will post 6.87 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Zoetis Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, September 1st. Stockholders of record on Monday, July 20th will be given a dividend of $0.53 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, July 20th. This represents a $2.12 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.7%. Zoetis's payout ratio is currently 35.16%.

About Zoetis

Zoetis Inc NYSE: ZTS is a global animal health company that develops, manufactures and markets a broad portfolio of products and services for companion animals and livestock. The company's offerings include pharmaceuticals, vaccines and biologics, parasiticides and anti-infectives, as well as diagnostic instruments, consumables and laboratory testing services. Zoetis serves the veterinary community, livestock producers and other animal-health customers with products designed to prevent, detect and treat disease and to support animal productivity and welfare.

Zoetis traces its roots to the animal health business of Pfizer and became an independent, publicly traded company following a 2013 separation and initial public offering.

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