Alliancebernstein L.P. Sells 3,579,168 Shares of Zoetis Inc. (NYSE:ZTS)

Alliancebernstein L.P. lowered its stake in Zoetis Inc. (NYSE:ZTS - Free Report) by 23.3% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 11,809,360 shares of the company's stock after selling 3,579,168 shares during the period. Zoetis makes up 0.7% of Alliancebernstein L.P.'s holdings, making the stock its 21st biggest holding. Alliancebernstein L.P. owned 2.62% of Zoetis worth $1,924,099,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of the stock. Callahan Advisors LLC raised its position in shares of Zoetis by 90.4% in the 4th quarter. Callahan Advisors LLC now owns 13,105 shares of the company's stock valued at $2,135,000 after buying an additional 6,221 shares in the last quarter. CIBC Asset Management Inc lifted its stake in Zoetis by 24.1% during the fourth quarter. CIBC Asset Management Inc now owns 237,369 shares of the company's stock worth $38,617,000 after purchasing an additional 46,050 shares during the last quarter. Pensionfund Sabic boosted its holdings in shares of Zoetis by 55.6% in the 4th quarter. Pensionfund Sabic now owns 11,200 shares of the company's stock valued at $1,825,000 after purchasing an additional 4,000 shares in the last quarter. PFW Advisors LLC bought a new position in Zoetis in the fourth quarter valued at about $1,764,000. Finally, Alberta Investment Management Corp raised its stake in Zoetis by 2,050.0% during the fourth quarter. Alberta Investment Management Corp now owns 30,100 shares of the company's stock worth $4,904,000 after acquiring an additional 28,700 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 92.80% of the company's stock.

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Zoetis Trading Down 2.4 %

NYSE ZTS traded down $3.98 during mid-day trading on Thursday, reaching $159.52. 2,496,866 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 2,599,759. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.09, a current ratio of 1.75 and a quick ratio of 1.08. The stock has a market cap of $71.43 billion, a P/E ratio of 29.19, a P/E/G ratio of 2.78 and a beta of 0.94. The stock has a 50 day simple moving average of $166.20 and a 200-day simple moving average of $173.98. Zoetis Inc. has a one year low of $144.80 and a one year high of $200.33.

Zoetis (NYSE:ZTS - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, February 13th. The company reported $1.40 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates 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 for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.30 billion. On average, analysts anticipate that Zoetis Inc. will post 6.07 EPS for the current year.

Zoetis Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, June 3rd. Stockholders of record on Monday, April 21st will be given a dividend of $0.50 per share. This represents a $2.00 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.25%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, April 21st. Zoetis's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 36.56%.

Insider Activity

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

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities research analysts have recently weighed in on ZTS shares. Piper Sandler raised their price target on shares of Zoetis from $200.00 to $205.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research note on Thursday, February 27th. Morgan Stanley decreased their target price on shares of Zoetis from $243.00 to $238.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, February 14th. UBS Group assumed coverage on Zoetis in a research note on Monday, December 9th. They issued a "neutral" rating and a $196.00 price target for the company. Barclays lifted their target price on shares of Zoetis from $242.00 to $244.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research report on Friday, February 14th. Finally, StockNews.com upgraded shares of Zoetis from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research report on Friday, March 7th. One analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating, ten have issued a buy rating and two have issued a strong buy rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of "Buy" and a consensus price target of $215.90.

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.