Wills Financial Group Inc. Raises Stock Holdings in Zoetis Inc. (NYSE:ZTS)

Wills Financial Group Inc. raised its position in shares of Zoetis Inc. (NYSE:ZTS) by 5.4% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 21,399 shares of the company’s stock after buying an additional 1,102 shares during the period. Zoetis comprises about 1.5% of Wills Financial Group Inc.’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 26th biggest holding. Wills Financial Group Inc.’s holdings in Zoetis were worth $3,487,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other large investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Atlantic Edge Private Wealth Management LLC grew its stake in shares of Zoetis by 482.8% in the fourth quarter. Atlantic Edge Private Wealth Management LLC now owns 169 shares of the company’s stock worth $28,000 after purchasing an additional 140 shares during the last quarter. Rakuten Securities Inc. grew its position in shares of Zoetis by 5,533.3% in the 4th quarter. Rakuten Securities Inc. now owns 169 shares of the company’s stock worth $28,000 after buying an additional 166 shares during the last quarter. Murphy & Mullick Capital Management Corp bought a new stake in shares of Zoetis in the 4th quarter worth approximately $44,000. Asset Planning Inc purchased a new position in shares of Zoetis during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $58,000. Finally, Pilgrim Partners Asia Pte Ltd bought a new position in shares of Zoetis during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $59,000. Institutional investors own 92.80% of the company’s stock.

Insider Activity at Zoetis

In other Zoetis news, Director Willie M. Reed sold 1,210 shares of the stock in a transaction 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 directly owns 11,245 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,868,244.30. This trade represents a 9.71 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, EVP Roxanne Lagano sold 326 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Monday, March 10th. The stock was sold at an average price of $170.00, for a total value of $55,420.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 15,781 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,682,770. This represents a 2.02 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last ninety days, insiders have sold 1,862 shares of company stock valued at $312,254. 0.16% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research firms recently weighed in on ZTS. Morgan Stanley cut 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 target price on shares of Zoetis from $180.00 to $165.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, April 14th. Barclays increased their price target on shares of Zoetis from $242.00 to $244.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday, February 14th. 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. Finally, StockNews.com upgraded Zoetis from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, March 7th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating, ten have given a buy rating and two have assigned a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, Zoetis currently has an average rating of “Buy” and a consensus price target of $214.40.

Zoetis Price Performance

Shares of NYSE ZTS opened at $153.58 on Friday. The company has a 50 day simple moving average of $158.91 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $168.62. Zoetis Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $139.70 and a fifty-two week high of $200.33. The company has a market capitalization of $68.52 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 28.08, a P/E/G ratio of 2.78 and a beta of 0.92. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.09, a quick ratio of 1.08 and a current ratio of 1.75.

Zoetis (NYSE:ZTS) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, February 13th. The company reported $1.40 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates 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 return on equity of 53.82% and a net margin of 26.86%. Analysts expect that Zoetis Inc. will post 6.07 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Zoetis Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared 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. This represents a $2.00 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.30%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, April 21st. Zoetis’s dividend payout ratio is presently 36.56%.

Zoetis 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.