Zoetis Inc. (NYSE:ZTS) Shares Sold by Nomura Asset Management Co. Ltd.

Nomura Asset Management Co. Ltd. decreased its stake in shares of Zoetis Inc. (NYSE:ZTS - Free Report) by 4.9% in the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 177,141 shares of the company's stock after selling 9,063 shares during the period. Nomura Asset Management Co. Ltd.'s holdings in Zoetis were worth $34,610,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other large investors also recently bought and sold shares of ZTS. State Street Corp boosted its holdings in Zoetis by 0.5% in the third quarter. State Street Corp now owns 19,779,344 shares of the company's stock valued at $3,864,488,000 after acquiring an additional 95,856 shares during the last quarter. Mizuho Securities USA LLC grew its holdings in shares of Zoetis by 13,726.9% during the 3rd 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 period. Bank of New York Mellon Corp increased its position in Zoetis by 4.0% during the 2nd quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 4,687,902 shares of the company's stock worth $812,695,000 after purchasing an additional 178,303 shares in the last quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC raised 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 buying an additional 194,542 shares during the period. Finally, Clearbridge Investments LLC raised its holdings in Zoetis by 5.8% in the second quarter. Clearbridge Investments LLC now owns 3,044,384 shares of the company's stock valued at $527,774,000 after buying an additional 166,517 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 92.80% of the company's stock.

Zoetis Stock Performance

ZTS traded down $1.44 during trading hours on Tuesday, hitting $176.71. 1,646,209 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 2,541,524. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.26, a current ratio of 3.69 and a quick ratio of 2.27. Zoetis Inc. has a 12 month low of $144.80 and a 12 month high of $201.92. The stock has a 50-day simple moving average of $181.72 and a 200-day simple moving average of $181.12. The stock has a market cap of $79.73 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 33.22, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.88 and a beta of 0.89.

Zoetis (NYSE:ZTS - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Monday, November 4th. The company reported $1.58 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $1.46 by $0.12. Zoetis had a net margin of 26.55% and a return on equity of 51.98%. The business had revenue of $2.40 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.29 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $1.36 EPS. The company's revenue for the quarter was up 11.6% compared to the same quarter last year. Analysts anticipate that Zoetis Inc. will post 5.9 earnings per share for the current year.

Zoetis Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, December 3rd. Investors of record on Thursday, October 31st were issued a $0.432 dividend. This represents a $1.73 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.98%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, October 31st. Zoetis's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 32.52%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities research analysts have recently issued reports on ZTS shares. Leerink Partnrs raised shares of Zoetis to a "strong-buy" rating in a research report on Monday, December 2nd. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their price objective on Zoetis from $225.00 to $230.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research note on Friday, October 11th. UBS Group began coverage on Zoetis in a research note on Monday. They issued a "neutral" rating and a $196.00 target price for the company. Leerink Partners began coverage on Zoetis in a report on Monday, December 2nd. They issued an "outperform" rating and a $215.00 price target for the company. Finally, BTIG Research increased their price objective on shares of Zoetis from $220.00 to $225.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Monday, August 12th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating, ten have issued a buy rating and two have assigned a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of "Buy" and a consensus price target of $216.70.

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.