Virtu Financial LLC Purchases New Holdings in Zoetis Inc. (NYSE:ZTS)

Virtu Financial LLC acquired a new position in shares of Zoetis Inc. (NYSE:ZTS - Free Report) in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm acquired 52,919 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $8,622,000. Zoetis accounts for about 0.5% of Virtu Financial LLC's portfolio, making the stock its 23rd largest holding.

Several other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in ZTS. Atlantic Edge Private Wealth Management LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Zoetis by 482.8% in the 4th quarter. Atlantic Edge Private Wealth Management LLC now owns 169 shares of the company's stock worth $28,000 after acquiring an additional 140 shares in the last quarter. Rakuten Securities Inc. raised its position in Zoetis by 5,533.3% in the 4th quarter. Rakuten Securities Inc. now owns 169 shares of the company's stock worth $28,000 after purchasing an additional 166 shares during the last quarter. Darwin Wealth Management LLC bought a new position in Zoetis in the 3rd quarter valued at $31,000. Dunhill Financial LLC lifted its stake in shares of Zoetis by 80.6% during the third quarter. Dunhill Financial LLC now owns 168 shares of the company's stock valued at $33,000 after acquiring an additional 75 shares during the period. Finally, Asset Planning Inc bought a new position in Zoetis in the fourth quarter valued at about $58,000. 92.80% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Buying and Selling at Zoetis

In related news, EVP Roxanne Lagano sold 326 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Monday, March 10th. The stock was sold at an average price of $170.00, for a total value of $55,420.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 15,781 shares in the company, valued at $2,682,770. The trade was a 2.02 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, Director Willie M. Reed sold 1,210 shares of Zoetis stock in a transaction on Tuesday, March 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $166.14, for a total value of $201,029.40. Following the sale, the director now directly owns 11,245 shares of the company's stock, valued at $1,868,244.30. This represents a 9.71 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 1,862 shares of company stock valued at $312,254 in the last three months. 0.16% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

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Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research analysts have recently issued reports on the company. UBS Group started coverage on Zoetis in a research report on Monday, December 9th. They issued a "neutral" rating and a $196.00 price target on the stock. Piper Sandler lifted their price target on shares of Zoetis from $200.00 to $205.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research report on Thursday, February 27th. Stifel Nicolaus dropped their price objective on Zoetis from $210.00 to $180.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, January 7th. Morgan Stanley decreased their target price on Zoetis from $243.00 to $238.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a research note on Friday, February 14th. Finally, Leerink Partnrs upgraded Zoetis to a "strong-buy" rating in a report on Monday, December 2nd. One analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating, ten have assigned a buy rating and two have assigned a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of "Buy" and an average target price of $215.90.

Zoetis Stock Performance

Shares of Zoetis stock traded up $1.26 during trading on Wednesday, hitting $162.56. 2,078,203 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 2,492,312. Zoetis Inc. has a 1-year low of $144.80 and a 1-year high of $200.33. The company has a current ratio of 1.75, a quick ratio of 1.08 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.09. The stock has a market capitalization of $72.79 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 29.72, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.78 and a beta of 0.94. The company has a fifty day moving average price of $166.64 and a 200-day moving average price of $175.02.

Zoetis (NYSE:ZTS - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, February 13th. The company reported $1.40 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.37 by $0.03. Zoetis had a return on equity of 53.82% and a net margin of 26.86%. The company had revenue of $2.32 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.30 billion. As a group, equities analysts predict that Zoetis Inc. will post 6.07 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Zoetis Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, June 3rd. Investors of record on Monday, April 21st will be paid a $0.50 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, April 21st. This represents a $2.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.23%. Zoetis's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 36.56%.

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.