Mitchell Capital Management Co. Sells 2,390 Shares of Zoetis Inc. (NYSE:ZTS)

Mitchell Capital Management Co. decreased its position in shares of Zoetis Inc. (NYSE:ZTS - Free Report) by 6.3% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 35,476 shares of the company's stock after selling 2,390 shares during the period. Zoetis comprises 1.0% of Mitchell Capital Management Co.'s holdings, making the stock its 29th largest holding. Mitchell Capital Management Co.'s holdings in Zoetis were worth $5,780,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. State Street Corp raised its holdings in Zoetis by 0.5% in the 3rd quarter. State Street Corp now owns 19,779,344 shares of the company's stock valued at $3,864,488,000 after buying an additional 95,856 shares during the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC raised its stake in shares of Zoetis by 1.8% during the third quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 10,427,760 shares of the company's stock valued at $2,030,813,000 after acquiring an additional 185,364 shares during the last quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp lifted its holdings in shares of Zoetis by 8.5% during the fourth quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 5,561,910 shares of the company's stock worth $906,202,000 after purchasing an additional 433,429 shares during the period. Mizuho Securities USA LLC grew its stake in shares of Zoetis by 13,726.9% in the third quarter. Mizuho Securities USA LLC now owns 4,865,000 shares of the company's stock worth $950,524,000 after purchasing an additional 4,829,815 shares during the last quarter. Finally, UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC increased its holdings in Zoetis by 5.3% in the third quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC now owns 3,896,106 shares of the company's stock valued at $761,221,000 after purchasing an additional 194,542 shares during the period. 92.80% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, EVP Roxanne Lagano sold 326 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on 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 sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 16,107 shares of the company's stock, valued at $2,757,196.26. This trade represents a 1.98 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. 0.16% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Zoetis Stock Down 1.7 %

Shares of NYSE:ZTS traded down $2.94 during midday trading on Wednesday, hitting $166.96. 3,666,659 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 3,280,313. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.09, a current ratio of 1.75 and a quick ratio of 1.08. Zoetis Inc. has a 12 month low of $144.80 and a 12 month high of $200.33. The company has a market cap of $74.76 billion, a PE ratio of 30.52, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.78 and a beta of 0.94. The stock has a 50 day moving average price of $166.53 and a 200-day moving average price of $177.06.

Zoetis (NYSE:ZTS - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, February 13th. The company reported $1.40 EPS 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%. On average, sell-side analysts anticipate that Zoetis Inc. will post 6.07 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Zoetis Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, June 3rd. Investors of record on Monday, April 21st will be issued a dividend of $0.50 per share. This represents a $2.00 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.20%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, April 21st. Zoetis's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 36.56%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several brokerages have recently weighed in on ZTS. Piper Sandler increased their price target on Zoetis from $200.00 to $205.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research note on Thursday, February 27th. Morgan Stanley dropped their price target on shares of Zoetis from $243.00 to $238.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, February 14th. StockNews.com lowered shares of Zoetis from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Tuesday, February 25th. Stifel Nicolaus lowered their target price on shares of Zoetis from $210.00 to $180.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, January 7th. Finally, Barclays upped their price target 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. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, nine have issued a buy rating and two have given a strong buy rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of "Buy" and a consensus price target of $215.90.

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.