Zoetis Inc. (NYSE:ZTS) Shares Sold by Prudential Financial Inc.

Prudential Financial Inc. trimmed its position in Zoetis Inc. (NYSE:ZTS) by 18.4% in the fourth quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The firm owned 242,335 shares of the company’s stock after selling 54,548 shares during the quarter. Prudential Financial Inc.’s holdings in Zoetis were worth $39,484,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Callahan Advisors LLC boosted its stake in Zoetis by 90.4% during the fourth quarter. Callahan Advisors LLC now owns 13,105 shares of the company’s stock valued at $2,135,000 after buying an additional 6,221 shares in the last quarter. CIBC Asset Management Inc boosted its position in shares of Zoetis by 24.1% during the 4th quarter. CIBC Asset Management Inc now owns 237,369 shares of the company’s stock valued at $38,617,000 after purchasing an additional 46,050 shares in the last quarter. Pensionfund Sabic grew its stake in shares of Zoetis by 55.6% in the 4th quarter. Pensionfund Sabic now owns 11,200 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,825,000 after purchasing an additional 4,000 shares during the last quarter. PFW Advisors LLC bought a new stake in shares of Zoetis in the 4th quarter worth approximately $1,764,000. Finally, Alberta Investment Management Corp lifted its stake in Zoetis by 2,050.0% during the fourth quarter. Alberta Investment Management Corp now owns 30,100 shares of the company’s stock valued at $4,904,000 after purchasing an additional 28,700 shares during the last quarter. 92.80% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Zoetis Stock Performance

ZTS stock opened at $161.29 on Wednesday. The stock has a market cap of $72.22 billion, a P/E ratio of 29.49, a P/E/G ratio of 2.78 and a beta of 0.94. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.09, a quick ratio of 1.08 and a current ratio of 1.75. The firm has a 50 day simple moving average of $166.64 and a 200 day simple moving average of $175.02. 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 results on Thursday, February 13th. The company reported $1.40 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.37 by $0.03. Zoetis had a net margin of 26.86% and a return on equity of 53.82%. The business had revenue of $2.32 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.30 billion. Research analysts anticipate that Zoetis Inc. will post 6.07 earnings per share 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 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.24%. Zoetis’s payout ratio is 36.56%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research firms have issued reports on ZTS. Leerink Partners assumed coverage on shares of Zoetis in a research report on Monday, December 2nd. They issued an “outperform” rating and a $215.00 price target on the stock. Leerink Partnrs upgraded Zoetis to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Monday, December 2nd. Morgan Stanley reduced their target price on Zoetis from $243.00 to $238.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Friday, February 14th. UBS Group assumed coverage on Zoetis in a research note on Monday, December 9th. They issued a “neutral” rating and a $196.00 price target on the stock. Finally, StockNews.com upgraded Zoetis from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a 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 assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Buy” and a consensus price target of $215.90.

Insider Buying and Selling

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

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.