Zoetis Inc. $ZTS Shares Bought by Soltis Investment Advisors LLC

Key Points

• Soltis Investment Advisors increased its Zoetis stake by 58.9% in the third quarter, bringing its holdings to 129,952 shares valued at approximately $9.1 million. Institutional investors own 92.8% of the company.
• Analyst sentiment is mixed: Zoetis has an average “Hold” rating and a consensus price target of $98.20, while several firms recently lowered their targets. The company also faces concerns over weaker U.S. pet-care demand and reduced guidance.
• Zoetis reported quarterly EPS of $1.87, slightly above expectations, and declared a quarterly dividend of $0.53 per share, representing an annualized yield of about 2.7%. FDA approval of Convenia RTU and potentially strong upcoming earnings could provide additional catalysts.

Soltis Investment Advisors LLC raised its holdings in shares of Zoetis Inc. (NYSE:ZTS - Free Report) by 58.9% in the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 129,952 shares of the company's stock after acquiring an additional 48,180 shares during the period. Soltis Investment Advisors LLC's holdings in Zoetis were worth $9,075,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other large investors have also made changes to their positions in the business. Everett Harris & Co. CA raised its stake in shares of Zoetis by 31.4% during the 3rd quarter. Everett Harris & Co. CA now owns 9,274 shares of the company's stock valued at $648,000 after buying an additional 2,214 shares during the last quarter. Financial Solutions Advisory Group Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Zoetis by 1.1% in the 3rd quarter. Financial Solutions Advisory Group Inc. now owns 15,697 shares of the company's stock valued at $1,096,000 after buying an additional 170 shares during the period. Choreo LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Zoetis by 31.3% in the 3rd quarter. Choreo LLC now owns 14,913 shares of the company's stock valued at $1,041,000 after buying an additional 3,553 shares during the period. Sage Rhino Capital LLC boosted its stake in shares of Zoetis by 8.9% in the third quarter. Sage Rhino Capital LLC now owns 10,367 shares of the company's stock worth $724,000 after buying an additional 843 shares during the last quarter. Finally, China Universal Asset Management Co. Ltd. purchased a new stake in shares of Zoetis in the third quarter worth about $180,000. 92.80% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several analysts recently commented on the company. Morgan Stanley dropped their target price on Zoetis from $85.00 to $82.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a report on Thursday. William Blair lowered Zoetis from an "outperform" rating to a "market perform" rating in a research report on Thursday, August 6th. Citigroup lowered their price objective on Zoetis from $112.00 to $96.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, August 11th. HSBC dropped their price objective 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. Finally, Weiss Ratings raised shares of Zoetis from a "sell (d)" rating to a "sell (d+)" rating in a report on Thursday. Seven analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, twelve have assigned a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, Zoetis has an average rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $98.20.

Key Headlines Impacting Zoetis

Here are the key news stories impacting Zoetis this week:

• Positive Sentiment: The FDA approved Convenia RTU, a single-dose injectable antibiotic for dogs. The product expands Zoetis’ companion-animal portfolio and could provide a new source of prescription revenue. FDA approves Convenia RTU ahead of Q3 results for Zoetis stock
• Positive Sentiment: Analysts and Zacks’ earnings indicators point to the possibility of a third-quarter earnings beat, which may be improving sentiment ahead of the report. Zoetis expected to beat earnings estimates
• Neutral Sentiment: Zacks Research upgraded Zoetis from “strong sell” to “hold.” The move reduces negative pressure but stops short of signaling a bullish outlook. Zacks Research stock recommendations
• Neutral Sentiment: A valuation-compression thesis argues that Zoetis may be inexpensive relative to animal-health peers IDEXX Laboratories and Elanco, while livestock and international sales have helped offset weakness in U.S. pet care. Zoetis versus IDEXX and Elanco valuation analysis
• Negative Sentiment: Investors remain concerned that weaker U.S. pet-care demand and lower company guidance could limit a broader recovery, making the upcoming earnings report and outlook important catalysts.

Zoetis Stock Performance

NYSE ZTS opened at $78.81 on Friday. The stock has a market capitalization of $32.56 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 11.82, a PEG ratio of 1.15 and a beta of 0.74. The stock has a 50-day moving average of $74.95 and a 200 day moving average of $93.86. The company has a current ratio of 3.08, a quick ratio of 1.84 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.87. Zoetis Inc. has a twelve month low of $68.77 and a twelve month high of $145.04.

Zoetis (NYSE:ZTS - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, August 6th. The company reported $1.87 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $1.85 by $0.02. The company had revenue of $2.47 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $2.50 billion. Zoetis had a net margin of 27.49% and a return on equity of 74.89%. The firm's revenue for the quarter was down .2% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $1.76 earnings per share. Zoetis has set its FY 2026 guidance at 6.150-6.250 EPS. Sell-side analysts anticipate that Zoetis Inc. will post 6.15 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Zoetis Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, December 1st. Investors of record on Friday, October 30th will be given a dividend of $0.53 per share. The ex-dividend date is Friday, October 30th. This represents a $2.12 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.7%. Zoetis's payout ratio is presently 34.93%.

About Zoetis

Zoetis Inc is a global animal health company that develops, manufactures and markets medicines, vaccines, diagnostics, genetic products and related services for animals. Its offerings support the prevention, diagnosis and treatment of disease in both companion animals, including dogs, cats and horses, and livestock such as cattle, swine, poultry and fish.

The company's product portfolio includes prescription medicines, parasiticides, vaccines, veterinary diagnostics and animal genetics.

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