Avitas Wealth Management LLC Grows Stock Holdings in Zoetis Inc. (NYSE:ZTS)

Avitas Wealth Management LLC lifted its position in shares of Zoetis Inc. (NYSE:ZTS) by 359.2% in the fourth quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The firm owned 8,729 shares of the company’s stock after purchasing an additional 6,828 shares during the period. Avitas Wealth Management LLC’s holdings in Zoetis were worth $1,422,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other large investors also recently modified their holdings of the business. State Street Corp grew its position in shares of Zoetis by 0.5% in the 3rd quarter. State Street Corp now owns 19,779,344 shares of the company’s stock worth $3,864,488,000 after buying an additional 95,856 shares during the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC lifted its stake in Zoetis by 1.8% in the third quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 10,427,760 shares of the company’s stock worth $2,030,813,000 after acquiring an additional 185,364 shares during the period. Mizuho Securities USA LLC boosted its holdings in Zoetis by 13,726.9% in the third quarter. Mizuho Securities USA LLC now owns 4,865,000 shares of the company’s stock valued at $950,524,000 after acquiring an additional 4,829,815 shares in the last quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC boosted its holdings in Zoetis by 5.3% in the third quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC now owns 3,896,106 shares of the company’s stock valued at $761,221,000 after acquiring an additional 194,542 shares in the last quarter. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised its holdings in Zoetis by 10.6% in the 3rd quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 2,916,539 shares of the company’s stock worth $569,834,000 after purchasing an additional 279,092 shares in the last quarter. 92.80% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Zoetis Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:ZTS opened at $172.24 on Wednesday. The firm’s 50 day moving average price is $169.48 and its 200-day moving average price is $179.39. The company has a quick ratio of 2.27, a current ratio of 3.69 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.26. The stock has a market capitalization of $77.71 billion, a PE ratio of 32.38, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.72 and a beta of 0.90. Zoetis Inc. has a twelve month low of $144.80 and a twelve month high of $200.53.

Zoetis (NYSE:ZTS) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Monday, November 4th. The company reported $1.58 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.46 by $0.12. The business had revenue of $2.40 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $2.29 billion. Zoetis had a net margin of 26.55% and a return on equity of 51.98%. The company’s revenue was up 11.6% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the company posted $1.36 EPS. Equities research analysts expect that Zoetis Inc. will post 5.9 EPS for the current year.

Zoetis Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, March 4th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, January 21st will be issued a dividend of $0.50 per share. This represents a $2.00 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.16%. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, January 21st. This is a positive change from Zoetis’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.43. Zoetis’s payout ratio is currently 37.59%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities research analysts have recently weighed in on the stock. Morgan Stanley cut their target price on shares of Zoetis from $248.00 to $243.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, January 29th. UBS Group began coverage on Zoetis in a report on Monday, December 9th. They set a “neutral” rating and a $196.00 target price on the stock. Stifel Nicolaus lowered their target price on Zoetis from $210.00 to $180.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, January 7th. Leerink Partnrs raised Zoetis to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Monday, December 2nd. Finally, Leerink Partners initiated coverage on Zoetis in a report on Monday, December 2nd. They issued an “outperform” rating and a $215.00 price objective for the company. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating, ten have assigned a buy rating and two have issued a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Zoetis has a consensus rating of “Buy” and an average price target of $215.00.

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.