Zoetis Inc. (NYSE:ZTS) Shares Acquired by Fayez Sarofim & Co

Fayez Sarofim & Co lifted its holdings in Zoetis Inc. (NYSE:ZTS - Free Report) by 13.9% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 1,174,143 shares of the company's stock after purchasing an additional 143,225 shares during the period. Fayez Sarofim & Co owned about 0.26% of Zoetis worth $191,303,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

A number of other large investors also recently bought and sold shares of the business. Atlantic Edge Private Wealth Management LLC increased its holdings in 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. grew its position in shares of Zoetis by 5,533.3% in the fourth quarter. Rakuten Securities Inc. now owns 169 shares of the company's stock valued at $28,000 after purchasing an additional 166 shares during the period. Murphy & Mullick Capital Management Corp purchased a new stake in shares of Zoetis during the fourth quarter worth about $44,000. Asset Planning Inc acquired a new position in shares of Zoetis during the 4th quarter worth about $58,000. Finally, Pilgrim Partners Asia Pte Ltd purchased a new position in Zoetis in the 4th quarter valued at about $59,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 92.80% of the company's stock.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, EVP Roxanne Lagano sold 326 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, February 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $171.18, for a total transaction of $55,804.68. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 16,107 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $2,757,196.26. The trade was a 1.98 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, Director Willie M. Reed sold 1,210 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, March 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $166.14, for a total transaction of $201,029.40. Following the sale, the director now owns 11,245 shares in the company, valued at $1,868,244.30. The trade was a 9.71 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 1,862 shares of company stock worth $312,254 over the last ninety days. Corporate insiders own 0.16% of the company's stock.

Zoetis Trading Up 0.7 %

Shares of NYSE ZTS traded up $1.09 during mid-day trading on Wednesday, reaching $151.08. 2,093,141 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 2,522,363. The company's 50-day moving average is $159.06 and its 200-day moving average is $169.10. 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 firm has a market capitalization of $67.41 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 27.62, a PEG ratio of 2.78 and a beta of 0.92. Zoetis Inc. has a 52-week low of $139.70 and a 52-week high of $200.33.

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

Zoetis Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, June 3rd. Shareholders of record on Monday, April 21st will be given a $0.50 dividend. This represents a $2.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.32%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, April 21st. Zoetis's payout ratio is 36.56%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several analysts recently commented on the company. StockNews.com upgraded Zoetis from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research report on Friday, March 7th. Barclays increased their target price on shares of Zoetis from $242.00 to $244.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research report on Friday, February 14th. Piper Sandler boosted 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. Morgan Stanley cut their price objective on shares of Zoetis from $243.00 to $238.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a report on Friday, February 14th. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus lowered their target price on Zoetis from $180.00 to $165.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a report on Monday, April 14th. 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 stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Zoetis has an average rating of "Buy" and an average price target of $214.40.

Zoetis Company 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.