Kesler Norman & Wride LLC Lowers Stake in Zoetis Inc. (NYSE:ZTS)

Kesler Norman & Wride LLC reduced its position in Zoetis Inc. (NYSE:ZTS) by 7.7% during the 4th quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The firm owned 4,854 shares of the company’s stock after selling 403 shares during the quarter. Kesler Norman & Wride LLC’s holdings in Zoetis were worth $791,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of the company. Dunhill Financial LLC raised its holdings in Zoetis by 80.6% in the third quarter. Dunhill Financial LLC now owns 168 shares of the company’s stock valued at $33,000 after buying an additional 75 shares during the period. Atlantic Edge Private Wealth Management LLC increased its position in shares of Zoetis by 482.8% in the fourth quarter. Atlantic Edge Private Wealth Management LLC now owns 169 shares of the company’s stock worth $28,000 after acquiring an additional 140 shares in the last quarter. Rakuten Securities Inc. raised its stake in shares of Zoetis by 5,533.3% in the 4th quarter. Rakuten Securities Inc. now owns 169 shares of the company’s stock valued at $28,000 after acquiring an additional 166 shares during the period. Murphy & Mullick Capital Management Corp acquired a new position in shares of Zoetis during the 4th quarter valued at $44,000. Finally, Quarry LP boosted its position in Zoetis by 45.9% during the 3rd quarter. Quarry LP now owns 305 shares of the company’s stock worth $60,000 after purchasing an additional 96 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 92.80% of the company’s stock.

Zoetis Stock Performance

Zoetis stock opened at $161.77 on Wednesday. The company has a current ratio of 1.75, a quick ratio of 1.08 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.09. The stock has a 50 day moving average of $166.26 and a 200-day moving average of $174.05. The stock has a market cap of $72.44 billion, a P/E ratio of 29.57, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.78 and a beta of 0.94. Zoetis Inc. has a 52 week low of $144.80 and a 52 week high of $200.33.

Zoetis (NYSE:ZTS) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, February 13th. The company reported $1.40 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.37 by $0.03. The firm had revenue of $2.32 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.30 billion. Zoetis had a net margin of 26.86% and a return on equity of 53.82%. On average, analysts expect that Zoetis Inc. will post 6.07 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Zoetis Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared 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 is Monday, April 21st. This represents a $2.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.24%. Zoetis’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 36.56%.

Insider Activity at Zoetis

In related news, Director Willie M. Reed sold 1,210 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, March 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $166.14, for a total transaction of $201,029.40. Following the transaction, the director now directly owns 11,245 shares in the company, valued at $1,868,244.30. This trade represents a 9.71 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, EVP Roxanne Lagano sold 326 shares of Zoetis stock in a transaction on Monday, March 10th. The stock was sold at an average price of $170.00, for a total transaction of $55,420.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 15,781 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,682,770. This represents a 2.02 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 1,862 shares of company stock valued at $312,254 over the last three months. 0.16% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

ZTS has been the topic of several research reports. Barclays raised their price objective on Zoetis from $242.00 to $244.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday, February 14th. Piper Sandler raised their target price on Zoetis from $200.00 to $205.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Thursday, February 27th. Stifel Nicolaus decreased their price target on Zoetis from $210.00 to $180.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, January 7th. Morgan Stanley lowered their price objective on shares of Zoetis from $243.00 to $238.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, February 14th. Finally, StockNews.com raised shares of Zoetis from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, March 7th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating, ten have issued a buy rating and two have issued a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of “Buy” and an average target price of $215.90.

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.