Jacobi Capital Management LLC Boosts Stake in Zoetis Inc. (NYSE:ZTS)

Jacobi Capital Management LLC increased its position in Zoetis Inc. (NYSE:ZTS) by 2.3% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 8,978 shares of the company’s stock after buying an additional 203 shares during the period. Jacobi Capital Management LLC’s holdings in Zoetis were worth $1,463,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in ZTS. Howard Capital Management Group LLC raised its position in Zoetis by 0.8% during the third quarter. Howard Capital Management Group LLC now owns 104,866 shares of the company’s stock valued at $20,489,000 after purchasing an additional 883 shares during the period. Financial Advocates Investment Management raised its position in Zoetis by 6.2% during the third quarter. Financial Advocates Investment Management now owns 3,451 shares of the company’s stock valued at $674,000 after purchasing an additional 200 shares during the period. US Bancorp DE raised its position in Zoetis by 0.4% during the third quarter. US Bancorp DE now owns 151,819 shares of the company’s stock valued at $29,665,000 after purchasing an additional 637 shares during the period. Hills Bank & Trust Co raised its position in Zoetis by 13.5% during the third quarter. Hills Bank & Trust Co now owns 2,082 shares of the company’s stock valued at $407,000 after purchasing an additional 247 shares during the period. Finally, Lebenthal Global Advisors LLC raised its position in Zoetis by 9.2% during the third quarter. Lebenthal Global Advisors LLC now owns 1,266 shares of the company’s stock valued at $247,000 after purchasing an additional 107 shares during the period. 92.80% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Zoetis Stock Up 1.6 %

Shares of NYSE:ZTS opened at $167.58 on Friday. Zoetis Inc. has a 52-week low of $144.80 and a 52-week high of $200.53. The stock has a market cap of $75.04 billion, a P/E ratio of 30.64, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.78 and a beta of 0.90. The business’s 50 day moving average is $166.30 and its 200 day moving average is $177.30. The company has a quick ratio of 1.08, a current ratio of 1.75 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.09.

Zoetis (NYSE:ZTS) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, February 13th. The company reported $1.40 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.37 by $0.03. Zoetis had a return on equity of 53.82% and a net margin of 26.86%. The company had revenue of $2.32 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $2.30 billion. Sell-side analysts predict that Zoetis Inc. will post 6.07 EPS for the current year.

Zoetis Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, June 3rd. Investors of record on Monday, April 21st will be paid a $0.50 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, April 21st. This represents a $2.00 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.19%. Zoetis’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 36.56%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

ZTS has been the topic of a number of recent research reports. Piper Sandler upped their price objective on Zoetis from $200.00 to $205.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Thursday. StockNews.com cut Zoetis from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Tuesday, February 25th. Morgan Stanley cut their target price on Zoetis from $243.00 to $238.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, February 14th. Leerink Partners started coverage on Zoetis in a research note on Monday, December 2nd. They set an “outperform” rating and a $215.00 target price on the stock. Finally, UBS Group started coverage on Zoetis in a research note on Monday, December 9th. They set a “neutral” rating and a $196.00 target price on the stock. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, nine have given a buy rating and two have given a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Zoetis presently has an average rating of “Buy” and an average price target of $215.90.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Zoetis news, EVP Roxanne Lagano sold 326 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, February 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $171.18, for a total transaction of $55,804.68. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now owns 16,107 shares in the company, valued at $2,757,196.26. This represents a 1.98 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. 0.16% of the stock is owned by insiders.

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.