Franklin Street Advisors Inc. NC Raises Stock Holdings in Zoetis Inc. (NYSE:ZTS)

Franklin Street Advisors Inc. NC boosted its position in Zoetis Inc. (NYSE:ZTS) by 4.3% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 115,989 shares of the company’s stock after purchasing an additional 4,771 shares during the quarter. Zoetis makes up approximately 1.9% of Franklin Street Advisors Inc. NC’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 20th largest holding. Franklin Street Advisors Inc. NC’s holdings in Zoetis were worth $22,893,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of the company. Cary Street Partners Investment Advisory LLC grew its holdings in shares of Zoetis by 7.4% during the third quarter. Cary Street Partners Investment Advisory LLC now owns 93,735 shares of the company’s stock valued at $16,308,000 after buying an additional 6,457 shares during the last quarter. Peak Financial Advisors LLC acquired a new position in shares of Zoetis in the fourth quarter valued at about $2,776,000. BLB&B Advisors LLC raised its stake in shares of Zoetis by 1.9% in the third quarter. BLB&B Advisors LLC now owns 60,872 shares of the company’s stock worth $10,591,000 after purchasing an additional 1,107 shares during the last quarter. Ronald Blue Trust Inc. boosted its position in Zoetis by 5.4% in the third quarter. Ronald Blue Trust Inc. now owns 6,216 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,070,000 after buying an additional 317 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Raymond James Financial Services Advisors Inc. increased its holdings in Zoetis by 10.9% in the 4th quarter. Raymond James Financial Services Advisors Inc. now owns 183,564 shares of the company’s stock worth $36,230,000 after buying an additional 17,976 shares during the period. 92.80% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Insider Transactions at Zoetis

In related news, EVP Roxanne Lagano sold 923 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, March 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $173.33, for a total transaction of $159,983.59. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 15,723 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,725,267.59. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Over the last ninety days, insiders have sold 2,209 shares of company stock worth $408,453. Insiders own 0.12% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities research analysts have recently commented on the stock. BNP Paribas began coverage on shares of Zoetis in a research note on Thursday, December 7th. They set an “outperform” rating and a $237.00 price objective on the stock. Jefferies Financial Group reiterated a “buy” rating and issued a $230.00 price objective on shares of Zoetis in a research report on Tuesday, December 19th. Stifel Nicolaus raised their target price on Zoetis from $195.00 to $215.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, January 12th. Piper Sandler upped their price target on Zoetis from $215.00 to $220.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Tuesday, February 20th. Finally, Barclays boosted their price objective on Zoetis from $255.00 to $260.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, February 14th. Nine research analysts have rated the stock with a buy rating, Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Buy” and a consensus target price of $224.33.

Zoetis Trading Up 0.4 %

NYSE ZTS opened at $169.12 on Friday. Zoetis Inc. has a 52 week low of $151.03 and a 52 week high of $201.92. The company has a quick ratio of 2.00, a current ratio of 3.36 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.32. The stock has a market capitalization of $77.43 billion, a PE ratio of 33.36, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.57 and a beta of 0.87. The firm has a 50 day moving average of $185.92 and a two-hundred day moving average of $182.24.

Zoetis (NYSE:ZTS) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, February 13th. The company reported $1.24 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.32 by ($0.08). The business had revenue of $2.21 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.19 billion. Zoetis had a net margin of 27.43% and a return on equity of 51.25%. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 8.5% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the company earned $1.15 earnings per share. As a group, research analysts expect that Zoetis Inc. will post 5.8 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Zoetis Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, June 4th. Stockholders of record on Friday, April 19th will be issued a $0.432 dividend. This represents a $1.73 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.02%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, April 18th. Zoetis’s payout ratio is currently 34.12%.

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.