Wendell David Associates Inc. Sells 2,110 Shares of Zoetis Inc. (NYSE:ZTS)

Wendell David Associates Inc. lessened its holdings in Zoetis Inc. (NYSE:ZTS) by 20.9% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The firm owned 7,962 shares of the company’s stock after selling 2,110 shares during the quarter. Wendell David Associates Inc.’s holdings in Zoetis were worth $1,297,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the company. Darwin Wealth Management LLC bought a new position in Zoetis during the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $31,000. First Personal Financial Services bought a new position in shares of Zoetis in the third quarter worth approximately $33,000. Capital Performance Advisors LLP bought a new stake in shares of Zoetis during the third quarter valued at approximately $33,000. Dunhill Financial LLC raised its holdings in Zoetis by 80.6% in the 3rd quarter. Dunhill Financial LLC now owns 168 shares of the company’s stock worth $33,000 after acquiring an additional 75 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Quarry LP raised its stake in shares of Zoetis by 273.2% in the second quarter. Quarry LP now owns 209 shares of the company’s stock worth $36,000 after purchasing an additional 153 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 92.80% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities research analysts have commented on the stock. Leerink Partnrs raised shares of Zoetis to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Monday, December 2nd. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their price objective on shares of Zoetis from $225.00 to $230.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, October 11th. UBS Group assumed coverage on shares of Zoetis in a report on Monday, December 9th. They set a “neutral” rating and a $196.00 target price for the company. Stifel Nicolaus cut their price objective on shares of Zoetis from $210.00 to $180.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, January 7th. Finally, Leerink Partners began coverage on Zoetis in a research report on Monday, December 2nd. They set an “outperform” rating and a $215.00 target price on the stock. One analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating, nine have issued a buy rating and two have given a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of “Buy” and an average target price of $211.89.

Zoetis Price Performance

Shares of Zoetis stock opened at $166.64 on Thursday. The stock’s 50-day simple moving average is $170.60 and its 200-day simple moving average is $179.89. The company has a market capitalization of $75.18 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 31.32, a PEG ratio of 2.58 and a beta of 0.89. Zoetis Inc. has a 52 week low of $144.80 and a 52 week high of $200.53. The company has a quick ratio of 2.27, a current ratio of 3.69 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.26.

Zoetis (NYSE:ZTS) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Monday, November 4th. The company reported $1.58 EPS 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 business’s quarterly revenue was up 11.6% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company earned $1.36 EPS. As a group, analysts expect that Zoetis Inc. will post 5.9 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Zoetis Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, March 4th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, January 21st will be paid a dividend of $0.50 per share. This is a boost from Zoetis’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.43. This represents a $2.00 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.20%. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, January 21st. Zoetis’s payout ratio is presently 37.59%.

About Zoetis

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.