First Foundation Advisors Buys 2,059 Shares of Zoetis Inc. (NYSE:ZTS)

First Foundation Advisors boosted its holdings in shares of Zoetis Inc. (NYSE:ZTS - Free Report) by 10.7% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 21,301 shares of the company's stock after purchasing an additional 2,059 shares during the period. First Foundation Advisors' holdings in Zoetis were worth $3,471,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other large investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Norges Bank acquired a new position in shares of Zoetis in the fourth quarter worth about $824,321,000. Wellington Management Group LLP lifted its position in shares of Zoetis by 78.5% in the 4th quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 6,958,543 shares of the company's stock valued at $1,133,755,000 after acquiring an additional 3,059,255 shares in the last quarter. Raymond James Financial Inc. acquired a new position in Zoetis in the 4th quarter worth approximately $196,651,000. Polen Capital Management LLC grew its position in Zoetis by 17.5% during the 4th quarter. Polen Capital Management LLC now owns 7,483,194 shares of the company's stock worth $1,219,237,000 after purchasing an additional 1,116,541 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Amundi raised its stake in Zoetis by 46.2% during the 4th quarter. Amundi now owns 2,748,719 shares of the company's stock valued at $453,355,000 after purchasing an additional 867,993 shares during the period. 92.80% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

ZTS has been the subject of a number of research analyst reports. StockNews.com raised shares of Zoetis from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research report on Friday, March 7th. Piper Sandler lifted their target price on shares of Zoetis from $200.00 to $205.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research note on Thursday, February 27th. Morgan Stanley lowered their price target on shares of Zoetis from $243.00 to $238.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a report on Friday, February 14th. Stifel Nicolaus cut their price objective on Zoetis from $180.00 to $165.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a report on Monday. Finally, Barclays boosted their target price on Zoetis from $242.00 to $244.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research note on Friday, February 14th. One analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating, ten have issued a buy rating and two have issued a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of "Buy" and a consensus price target of $214.40.

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Zoetis Stock Performance

Shares of ZTS stock traded up $1.22 during trading on Monday, reaching $150.66. The company had a trading volume of 3,249,868 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,591,085. The firm's 50 day simple moving average is $162.51 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $171.22. Zoetis Inc. has a one year low of $139.70 and a one year high of $200.33. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.09, a current ratio of 1.75 and a quick ratio of 1.08. The company has a market capitalization of $67.22 billion, a PE ratio of 27.54, a PEG ratio of 2.78 and a beta of 0.92.

Zoetis (NYSE:ZTS - Get Free Report) last issued 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 business had revenue of $2.32 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $2.30 billion. Zoetis had a net margin of 26.86% and a return on equity of 53.82%. Sell-side analysts forecast that Zoetis Inc. will post 6.07 earnings per share 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 given a $0.50 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Monday, April 21st. This represents a $2.00 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.33%. Zoetis's dividend payout ratio is 36.56%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, EVP Roxanne Lagano sold 326 shares of Zoetis stock in a transaction dated Monday, March 10th. The stock was sold at an average price of $170.00, for a total transaction of $55,420.00. Following the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 15,781 shares of the company's stock, valued at $2,682,770. This trade represents a 2.02 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, Director Willie M. Reed sold 1,210 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, March 11th. The shares were sold at an average price of $166.14, for a total value of $201,029.40. Following the transaction, the director now owns 11,245 shares in the company, valued at $1,868,244.30. This represents a 9.71 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last quarter, insiders have sold 1,862 shares of company stock valued at $312,254. 0.16% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

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.