Johnson Investment Counsel Inc. Sells 4,137 Shares of Zoetis Inc. (NYSE:ZTS)

Johnson Investment Counsel Inc. decreased its holdings in Zoetis Inc. (NYSE:ZTS) by 0.8% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 518,289 shares of the company’s stock after selling 4,137 shares during the quarter. Johnson Investment Counsel Inc.’s holdings in Zoetis were worth $84,445,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other large investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Daiwa Securities Group Inc. grew its position in shares of Zoetis by 4.7% during the 4th quarter. Daiwa Securities Group Inc. now owns 75,874 shares of the company’s stock valued at $12,362,000 after acquiring an additional 3,421 shares during the period. Moran Wealth Management LLC grew its holdings in Zoetis by 2.1% during the fourth quarter. Moran Wealth Management LLC now owns 66,596 shares of the company’s stock valued at $10,850,000 after purchasing an additional 1,366 shares during the period. Isthmus Partners LLC increased its position in Zoetis by 0.3% in the fourth quarter. Isthmus Partners LLC now owns 68,821 shares of the company’s stock worth $11,213,000 after buying an additional 173 shares in the last quarter. Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank lifted its position in shares of Zoetis by 5.9% during the 4th quarter. Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank now owns 217,094 shares of the company’s stock valued at $35,371,000 after buying an additional 12,174 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Pettee Investors Inc. increased its holdings in Zoetis by 6.4% in the 4th quarter. Pettee Investors Inc. now owns 11,220 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,828,000 after acquiring an additional 670 shares in the last quarter. 92.80% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Insider Transactions at Zoetis

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

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research firms have weighed in on ZTS. Piper Sandler upped their price target on shares of Zoetis from $200.00 to $205.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Thursday, February 27th. Morgan Stanley dropped their target price on shares of Zoetis from $243.00 to $238.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Friday, February 14th. Barclays raised their price target on Zoetis from $242.00 to $244.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, February 14th. Stifel Nicolaus dropped their price objective on Zoetis from $210.00 to $180.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, January 7th. Finally, Leerink Partners initiated 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. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating, ten have issued a buy rating and two have given a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Buy” and a consensus target price of $215.90.

Zoetis Trading Up 1.8 %

Shares of ZTS opened at $170.34 on Monday. The stock has a market capitalization of $76.28 billion, a PE ratio of 31.14, a P/E/G ratio of 2.78 and a beta of 0.94. The company’s fifty day moving average is $166.72 and its 200 day moving average is $176.74. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.09, a quick ratio of 1.08 and a current ratio of 1.75. Zoetis Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $144.80 and a fifty-two week high of $200.33.

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

Zoetis Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, June 3rd. Stockholders of record on Monday, April 21st will be paid a $0.50 dividend. This represents a $2.00 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.17%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, April 21st. Zoetis’s payout ratio is 36.56%.

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.