Daiwa Securities Group Inc. Purchases 153 Shares of Zoetis Inc. (NYSE:ZTS)

Daiwa Securities Group Inc. grew its position in Zoetis Inc. (NYSE:ZTS) by 0.3% during the first quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 57,965 shares of the company’s stock after buying an additional 153 shares during the period. Daiwa Securities Group Inc.’s holdings in Zoetis were worth $9,809,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of ZTS. Peak Financial Advisors LLC acquired a new position in shares of Zoetis during the fourth quarter worth $2,776,000. Focus Financial Network Inc. ADV acquired a new position in Zoetis during the 4th quarter valued at about $2,159,000. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD raised its stake in Zoetis by 31.0% in the fourth quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD now owns 13,716,681 shares of the company’s stock valued at $2,707,262,000 after buying an additional 3,244,074 shares during the last quarter. Ninety One UK Ltd raised its stake in Zoetis by 13.1% in the fourth quarter. Ninety One UK Ltd now owns 108,293 shares of the company’s stock valued at $21,374,000 after buying an additional 12,537 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Raymond James Financial Services Advisors Inc. boosted its holdings in Zoetis by 10.9% in the fourth quarter. Raymond James Financial Services Advisors Inc. now owns 183,564 shares of the company’s stock worth $36,230,000 after acquiring an additional 17,976 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 92.80% of the company’s stock.

Insider Activity

In related news, EVP Roxanne Lagano sold 923 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, April 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $151.17, for a total transaction of $139,529.91. Following the sale, the executive vice president now owns 14,800 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,237,316. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Insiders own 0.16% of the company’s stock.

Zoetis Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE:ZTS traded up $0.47 on Monday, reaching $175.43. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 1,688,583 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,923,110. Zoetis Inc. has a 52-week low of $144.80 and a 52-week high of $201.92. The stock has a market capitalization of $80.05 billion, a P/E ratio of 33.90, a PEG ratio of 2.72 and a beta of 0.86. The stock’s 50-day moving average is $171.00 and its two-hundred day moving average is $177.80. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.30, a current ratio of 3.33 and a quick ratio of 1.94.

Zoetis (NYSE:ZTS) last released its earnings results on Thursday, May 2nd. The company reported $1.38 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.34 by $0.04. Zoetis had a return on equity of 50.34% and a net margin of 27.38%. The company had revenue of $2.19 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $2.14 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $1.31 EPS. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 9.5% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, sell-side analysts forecast that Zoetis Inc. will post 5.76 EPS for the current year.

Zoetis Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, September 4th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, July 18th will be paid a dividend of $0.432 per share. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, July 18th. This represents a $1.73 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.99%. Zoetis’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 33.33%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several brokerages recently commented on ZTS. The Goldman Sachs Group decreased their price objective on shares of Zoetis from $223.00 to $196.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Monday, May 6th. Barclays lowered their price objective on shares of Zoetis from $260.00 to $230.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, April 23rd. Piper Sandler reissued an “overweight” rating and issued a $195.00 target price (down from $220.00) on shares of Zoetis in a research report on Tuesday, April 16th. HSBC lowered their price target on Zoetis from $230.00 to $225.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, May 8th. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus cut their price objective on Zoetis from $195.00 to $180.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, April 30th. Eight investment analysts have rated the stock with a buy rating, According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Buy” and a consensus target price of $211.75.

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.