United Super Pty Ltd in its capacity as Trustee for the Construction & Building Unions Superannuation Fund Grows Position in Zoetis Inc. (NYSE:ZTS)

United Super Pty Ltd in its capacity as Trustee for the Construction & Building Unions Superannuation Fund raised its holdings in Zoetis Inc. (NYSE:ZTS) by 19.0% in the 4th quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The firm owned 180,637 shares of the company’s stock after acquiring an additional 28,839 shares during the period. Zoetis makes up 1.8% of United Super Pty Ltd in its capacity as Trustee for the Construction & Building Unions Superannuation Fund’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 23rd largest position. United Super Pty Ltd in its capacity as Trustee for the Construction & Building Unions Superannuation Fund’s holdings in Zoetis were worth $35,652,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of the business. Fairfield Bush & CO. bought a new position in Zoetis in the 1st quarter worth approximately $134,000. Sequoia Financial Advisors LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Zoetis by 5.3% in the first quarter. Sequoia Financial Advisors LLC now owns 4,166 shares of the company’s stock worth $786,000 after acquiring an additional 211 shares during the period. Candriam Luxembourg S.C.A. grew its position in shares of Zoetis by 3.9% in the first quarter. Candriam Luxembourg S.C.A. now owns 51,581 shares of the company’s stock valued at $9,727,000 after purchasing an additional 1,914 shares in the last quarter. Covestor Ltd raised its stake in shares of Zoetis by 102.8% during the 1st quarter. Covestor Ltd now owns 724 shares of the company’s stock valued at $137,000 after purchasing an additional 367 shares during the period. Finally, Merit Financial Group LLC raised its stake in shares of Zoetis by 92.8% during the 1st quarter. Merit Financial Group LLC now owns 2,342 shares of the company’s stock valued at $442,000 after purchasing an additional 1,127 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 92.80% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research analysts have weighed in on ZTS shares. The Goldman Sachs Group lifted their target price on Zoetis from $190.00 to $226.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, January 17th. Stifel Nicolaus decreased their target price on shares of Zoetis from $215.00 to $195.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, April 2nd. Barclays increased their target price on shares of Zoetis from $255.00 to $260.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, February 14th. StockNews.com downgraded shares of Zoetis from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, February 20th. Finally, Piper Sandler reaffirmed an “overweight” rating and issued a $195.00 price target (down previously from $220.00) on shares of Zoetis in a report on Tuesday. Eight analysts have rated the stock with a buy rating, According to MarketBeat, Zoetis currently has an average rating of “Buy” and a consensus price target of $221.75.

Insider Activity

In related news, EVP Roxanne Lagano sold 363 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Monday, February 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $197.74, for a total value of $71,779.62. Following the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 20,417 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $4,037,257.58. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Over the last three months, insiders have sold 2,209 shares of company stock valued at $408,453. Company insiders own 0.15% of the company’s stock.

Zoetis Price Performance

NYSE ZTS traded down $1.05 during trading hours on Wednesday, reaching $151.97. 2,473,279 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 2,952,470. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.32, a current ratio of 3.36 and a quick ratio of 2.00. The stock has a 50 day simple moving average of $178.25 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $180.59. Zoetis Inc. has a 1 year low of $148.48 and a 1 year high of $201.92. The company has a market cap of $69.50 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 30.18, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.29 and a beta of 0.85.

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

Zoetis Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, June 4th. Investors of record on Friday, April 19th will be paid a $0.432 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, April 18th. This represents a $1.73 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.14%. Zoetis’s payout ratio is presently 34.12%.

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.