AlphaQuest LLC Decreases Stake in Zoetis Inc. (NYSE:ZTS)

AlphaQuest LLC lowered its holdings in Zoetis Inc. (NYSE:ZTS - Free Report) by 16.7% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 8,669 shares of the company's stock after selling 1,738 shares during the quarter. AlphaQuest LLC's holdings in Zoetis were worth $1,412,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Other hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of the company. Callahan Advisors LLC raised its stake in shares of Zoetis by 90.4% in the fourth quarter. Callahan Advisors LLC now owns 13,105 shares of the company's stock worth $2,135,000 after purchasing an additional 6,221 shares during the last quarter. Pensionfund Sabic raised its stake in shares of Zoetis by 55.6% in the fourth quarter. Pensionfund Sabic now owns 11,200 shares of the company's stock worth $1,825,000 after purchasing an additional 4,000 shares during the last quarter. CIBC Asset Management Inc grew its holdings in shares of Zoetis by 24.1% in the fourth quarter. CIBC Asset Management Inc now owns 237,369 shares of the company's stock worth $38,617,000 after acquiring an additional 46,050 shares during the period. PFW Advisors LLC bought a new stake in shares of Zoetis in the fourth quarter worth $1,764,000. Finally, Alberta Investment Management Corp grew its holdings in shares of Zoetis by 2,050.0% in 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 during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 92.80% of the company's stock.

Zoetis Stock Performance

NYSE:ZTS opened at $170.34 on Monday. The firm has a market capitalization of $76.28 billion, a PE ratio of 31.14, a P/E/G ratio of 2.78 and a beta of 0.94. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.09, a quick ratio of 1.08 and a current ratio of 1.75. The stock has a 50-day simple moving average of $166.72 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $176.74. Zoetis Inc. has a 52-week low of $144.80 and a 52-week high of $200.33.

Remove Ads

Zoetis (NYSE:ZTS - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, February 13th. The company reported $1.40 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $1.37 by $0.03. The firm had revenue of $2.32 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.30 billion. Zoetis had a return on equity of 53.82% and a net margin of 26.86%. Analysts forecast that Zoetis Inc. will post 6.07 EPS for the current year.

Zoetis Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, June 3rd. Stockholders of record on Monday, April 21st will be paid a $0.50 dividend. This represents a $2.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.17%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, April 21st. Zoetis's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 36.56%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

ZTS has been the subject of several research analyst reports. Stifel Nicolaus cut their price objective on Zoetis from $210.00 to $180.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, January 7th. Barclays lifted their price objective on Zoetis from $242.00 to $244.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a report on Friday, February 14th. Leerink Partnrs raised Zoetis to a "strong-buy" rating in a report on Monday, December 2nd. Morgan Stanley cut their price objective on Zoetis from $243.00 to $238.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a report on Friday, February 14th. Finally, Piper Sandler lifted their price objective on Zoetis from $200.00 to $205.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a report on Thursday, February 27th. One equities research 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's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of "Buy" and an average target price of $215.90.

Insider Transactions at Zoetis

In other news, EVP Roxanne Lagano sold 326 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, February 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $171.18, for a total value of $55,804.68. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 16,107 shares of the company's stock, valued at $2,757,196.26. This represents a 1.98 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Corporate insiders own 0.16% of the company's stock.

About Zoetis

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.

This instant news alert was generated by narrative science technology and financial data from MarketBeat in order to provide readers with the fastest and most accurate reporting. This story was reviewed by MarketBeat's editorial team prior to publication. Please send any questions or comments about this story to contact@marketbeat.com.