PFG Investments LLC Acquires 115 Shares of Zoetis Inc. (NYSE:ZTS)

PFG Investments LLC grew its holdings in Zoetis Inc. (NYSE:ZTS) by 3.7% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 3,265 shares of the company’s stock after purchasing an additional 115 shares during the period. PFG Investments LLC’s holdings in Zoetis were worth $532,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of ZTS. Darwin Wealth Management LLC bought a new stake in Zoetis in the 3rd quarter worth about $31,000. First Personal Financial Services bought a new stake in shares of Zoetis in the third quarter worth approximately $33,000. Capital Performance Advisors LLP purchased a new position in shares of Zoetis during the third quarter valued at approximately $33,000. Dunhill Financial LLC boosted its holdings in Zoetis by 80.6% in the third quarter. Dunhill Financial LLC now owns 168 shares of the company’s stock worth $33,000 after purchasing an additional 75 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Quarry LP grew its position in Zoetis by 273.2% in the 2nd quarter. Quarry LP now owns 209 shares of the company’s stock worth $36,000 after purchasing an additional 153 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 92.80% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

ZTS has been the topic of a number of research reports. Morgan Stanley dropped their price target on Zoetis from $248.00 to $243.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday. UBS Group assumed coverage on Zoetis in a research note on Monday, December 9th. They set a “neutral” rating and a $196.00 price target for the company. Leerink Partners assumed coverage on shares of Zoetis in a research note on Monday, December 2nd. They issued an “outperform” rating and a $215.00 price objective on the stock. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their target price on shares of Zoetis from $225.00 to $230.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday, October 11th. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus decreased their price target on shares of Zoetis from $210.00 to $180.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, January 7th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating, ten have assigned a buy rating and two have assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Buy” and an average target price of $215.00.

Zoetis Price Performance

NYSE:ZTS opened at $170.33 on Thursday. The business’s 50-day simple moving average is $169.93 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $179.65. 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 $76.85 billion, a PE ratio of 32.02, a P/E/G ratio of 2.57 and a beta of 0.89. 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 issued its earnings results on Monday, November 4th. The company reported $1.58 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.46 by $0.12. Zoetis had a return on equity of 51.98% and a net margin of 26.55%. The company had revenue of $2.40 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.29 billion. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $1.36 EPS. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 11.6% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, analysts forecast that Zoetis Inc. will post 5.9 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Zoetis Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, March 4th. Investors of record on Tuesday, January 21st will be given a dividend of $0.50 per share. This is a positive change from Zoetis’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.43. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, January 21st. This represents a $2.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.17%. Zoetis’s dividend payout ratio is currently 37.59%.

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.