Zoetis Inc. (NYSE:ZTS) Shares Sold by Vaughan Nelson Investment Management L.P.

Vaughan Nelson Investment Management L.P. reduced its position in shares of Zoetis Inc. (NYSE:ZTS) by 1.7% during the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 1,346,176 shares of the company’s stock after selling 23,575 shares during the period. Zoetis comprises approximately 2.3% of Vaughan Nelson Investment Management L.P.’s holdings, making the stock its 6th largest holding. Vaughan Nelson Investment Management L.P. owned about 0.30% of Zoetis worth $263,016,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other large investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. First Personal Financial Services acquired a new stake in Zoetis in the third quarter worth $33,000. Capital Performance Advisors LLP acquired a new position in Zoetis during the 3rd quarter valued at about $33,000. Quarry LP grew its position in Zoetis by 273.2% in the 2nd quarter. Quarry LP now owns 209 shares of the company’s stock worth $36,000 after purchasing an additional 153 shares during the last quarter. LRI Investments LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Zoetis in the first quarter valued at approximately $43,000. Finally, Fortitude Family Office LLC raised its holdings in shares of Zoetis by 1,387.5% during the third quarter. Fortitude Family Office LLC now owns 238 shares of the company’s stock valued at $46,000 after buying an additional 222 shares during the last quarter. 92.80% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Zoetis Trading Up 0.3 %

Zoetis stock opened at $175.14 on Friday. Zoetis Inc. has a 1 year low of $144.80 and a 1 year high of $201.92. The firm’s 50 day moving average price is $187.09 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $180.23. The firm has a market cap of $79.02 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 32.92, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.69 and a beta of 0.90. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.26, a quick ratio of 2.27 and a current ratio of 3.69.

Zoetis (NYSE:ZTS) last announced its earnings results on Monday, November 4th. The company reported $1.58 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.46 by $0.12. The company had revenue of $2.40 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.29 billion. Zoetis had a return on equity of 51.98% and a net margin of 26.55%. Zoetis’s revenue for the quarter was up 11.6% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned $1.36 earnings per share. On average, research analysts predict that Zoetis Inc. will post 5.9 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Zoetis Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, December 3rd. Stockholders of record on Thursday, October 31st will be issued a dividend of $0.432 per share. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, October 31st. This represents a $1.73 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.99%. Zoetis’s dividend payout ratio is currently 32.52%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research firms recently commented on ZTS. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their target price on Zoetis from $225.00 to $230.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday, October 11th. Piper Sandler lifted their price objective on shares of Zoetis from $195.00 to $210.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, August 14th. Stifel Nicolaus increased their target price on shares of Zoetis from $200.00 to $210.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, September 18th. BTIG Research increased their price objective on shares of Zoetis from $220.00 to $225.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, August 12th. Finally, Argus raised Zoetis to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Friday, August 9th. Ten analysts have rated the stock with a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, Zoetis presently has a consensus rating of “Buy” and an average price target of $221.44.

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.