Nisa Investment Advisors LLC Lowers Stake in Zoetis Inc. $ZTS

Nisa Investment Advisors LLC cut its position in Zoetis Inc. (NYSE:ZTS) by 12.1% in the third quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The firm owned 140,164 shares of the company’s stock after selling 19,365 shares during the quarter. Nisa Investment Advisors LLC’s holdings in Zoetis were worth $20,509,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of the company. Norges Bank bought a new position in Zoetis in the 2nd quarter worth $809,491,000. Mitsubishi UFJ Asset Management Co. Ltd. lifted its position in shares of Zoetis by 113.0% in the second quarter. Mitsubishi UFJ Asset Management Co. Ltd. now owns 3,761,920 shares of the company’s stock valued at $586,671,000 after acquiring an additional 1,995,491 shares in the last quarter. Corient Private Wealth LLC boosted its stake in shares of Zoetis by 85.9% in the second quarter. Corient Private Wealth LLC now owns 2,578,593 shares of the company’s stock worth $400,619,000 after acquiring an additional 1,191,840 shares during the period. Impax Asset Management Group plc grew its position in shares of Zoetis by 362.6% during the second quarter. Impax Asset Management Group plc now owns 1,176,996 shares of the company’s stock worth $182,705,000 after purchasing an additional 922,589 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Swedbank AB raised its stake in Zoetis by 60.4% during the 3rd quarter. Swedbank AB now owns 2,436,888 shares of the company’s stock valued at $356,565,000 after purchasing an additional 917,598 shares during the period. 92.80% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research analysts have weighed in on the company. HSBC set a $140.00 price target on Zoetis in a research note on Wednesday, December 10th. Morgan Stanley set a $160.00 target price on shares of Zoetis in a research report on Thursday, December 18th. Barclays initiated coverage on shares of Zoetis in a report on Monday, December 8th. They issued an “equal weight” rating and a $136.00 price target on the stock. The Goldman Sachs Group raised shares of Zoetis to a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, December 15th. Finally, UBS Group cut their price objective on Zoetis from $158.00 to $141.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, November 5th. Six analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, seven have issued a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, Zoetis presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $160.18.

Zoetis Price Performance

Zoetis stock opened at $127.10 on Friday. Zoetis Inc. has a 52-week low of $115.25 and a 52-week high of $177.40. The company has a quick ratio of 2.28, a current ratio of 3.64 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.31. The firm’s fifty day moving average is $123.29 and its 200 day moving average is $140.72. The company has a market cap of $56.01 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 21.40, a PEG ratio of 2.58 and a beta of 0.97.

Zoetis (NYSE:ZTS) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, November 4th. The company reported $1.70 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.62 by $0.08. The business had revenue of $2.40 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $2.42 billion. Zoetis had a net margin of 28.21% and a return on equity of 57.19%. The business’s revenue was up .5% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the company posted $1.58 EPS. Zoetis has set its FY 2025 guidance at 6.300-6.400 EPS. Sell-side analysts forecast that Zoetis Inc. will post 6.07 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Zoetis Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, March 3rd. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, January 20th will be given a dividend of $0.53 per share. This represents a $2.12 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.7%. This is a boost from Zoetis’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.50. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, January 20th. Zoetis’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 33.67%.

Zoetis Profile

Zoetis Inc (NYSE: ZTS) is a global animal health company that develops, manufactures and markets a broad portfolio of products and services for companion animals and livestock. The company’s offerings include pharmaceuticals, vaccines and biologics, parasiticides and anti-infectives, as well as diagnostic instruments, consumables and laboratory testing services. Zoetis serves the veterinary community, livestock producers and other animal-health customers with products designed to prevent, detect and treat disease and to support animal productivity and welfare.

Zoetis traces its roots to the animal health business of Pfizer and became an independent, publicly traded company following a 2013 separation and initial public offering.