Insider Selling: Zoetis Inc. (NYSE:ZTS) Director Sells 1,210 Shares of Stock

Zoetis Inc. (NYSE:ZTS - Get Free Report) Director Willie M. Reed sold 1,210 shares of Zoetis 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 completion of the transaction, the director now 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 sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link.

Zoetis Stock Performance

ZTS stock traded down $7.41 on Tuesday, hitting $164.39. The company's stock had a trading volume of 3,510,886 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,578,671. 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 cap of $73.61 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 30.05, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.78 and a beta of 0.94. The firm has a 50 day moving average of $166.91 and a two-hundred day moving average of $176.66.

Zoetis (NYSE:ZTS - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, February 13th. The company reported $1.40 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating 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 firm had revenue of $2.32 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $2.30 billion. Equities analysts predict 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. Stockholders of record on Monday, April 21st will be paid a $0.50 dividend. This represents a $2.00 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.22%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, April 21st. Zoetis's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 36.56%.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the company. Atlantic Edge Private Wealth Management LLC lifted its holdings in Zoetis by 482.8% in the fourth quarter. Atlantic Edge Private Wealth Management LLC now owns 169 shares of the company's stock valued at $28,000 after acquiring an additional 140 shares during the period. Rakuten Securities Inc. boosted its holdings in Zoetis by 5,533.3% during the fourth quarter. Rakuten Securities Inc. now owns 169 shares of the company's stock worth $28,000 after buying an additional 166 shares in the last quarter. Navigoe LLC acquired a new position in Zoetis during the fourth quarter worth about $30,000. Darwin Wealth Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Zoetis during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $31,000. Finally, Capital Performance Advisors LLP purchased a new position in shares of Zoetis in the third quarter valued at $33,000. 92.80% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research firms recently commented on ZTS. Leerink Partnrs raised Zoetis to a "strong-buy" rating in a report on Monday, December 2nd. Stifel Nicolaus dropped their price objective on Zoetis from $210.00 to $180.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a report 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. Leerink Partners started coverage on shares of Zoetis in a research note on Monday, December 2nd. They issued an "outperform" rating and a $215.00 price target on the stock. Finally, Piper Sandler raised their price objective on shares of 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 issued a buy rating and two have given a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, Zoetis has a consensus rating of "Buy" and a consensus price target of $215.90.

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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.

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