Nicholson Wealth Management Group LLC Boosts Stock Holdings in Zoetis Inc. (NYSE:ZTS)

Nicholson Wealth Management Group LLC raised its stake in Zoetis Inc. (NYSE:ZTS) by 137.5% in the fourth quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The institutional investor owned 7,875 shares of the company’s stock after buying an additional 4,559 shares during the quarter. Nicholson Wealth Management Group LLC’s holdings in Zoetis were worth $1,283,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Darwin Wealth Management LLC purchased a new position in Zoetis in the third quarter valued at about $31,000. First Personal Financial Services purchased a new position in Zoetis in the third quarter valued at about $33,000. Capital Performance Advisors LLP purchased a new position in Zoetis in the third quarter valued at about $33,000. Dunhill Financial LLC increased 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 in the last quarter. Finally, Atlantic Edge Private Wealth Management LLC increased its holdings in Zoetis by 482.8% in the fourth quarter. Atlantic Edge Private Wealth Management LLC now owns 169 shares of the company’s stock valued at $28,000 after buying an additional 140 shares in the last quarter. 92.80% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of brokerages have issued reports on ZTS. Stifel Nicolaus dropped their target price on shares of Zoetis from $210.00 to $180.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, January 7th. Barclays increased their price target on shares of Zoetis from $242.00 to $244.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday, February 14th. UBS Group initiated coverage on shares of Zoetis in a research report on Monday, December 9th. They issued a “neutral” rating and a $196.00 price target on the stock. Morgan Stanley lowered their price target on shares of Zoetis from $243.00 to $238.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, February 14th. Finally, Piper Sandler lowered their price target on shares of Zoetis from $210.00 to $200.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, February 10th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating, nine have issued a buy rating and two have assigned a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Zoetis has a consensus rating of “Buy” and an average target price of $214.90.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Zoetis news, EVP Roxanne Lagano sold 326 shares of Zoetis stock in a transaction on Tuesday, February 11th. The shares were sold at an average price of $171.18, for a total value of $55,804.68. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 16,107 shares in the company, valued at $2,757,196.26. This trade represents a 1.98 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. 0.16% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Zoetis Stock Up 0.5 %

Shares of NYSE ZTS opened at $157.38 on Friday. Zoetis Inc. has a 1 year low of $144.80 and a 1 year high of $200.53. The firm’s 50 day moving average price is $166.86 and its 200 day moving average price is $178.14. The firm has a market cap of $70.47 billion, a P/E ratio of 28.77, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.77 and a beta of 0.90. 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 (NYSE:ZTS) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, February 13th. The company reported $1.40 earnings per share (EPS) 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 firm had revenue of $2.32 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.30 billion. As a group, sell-side analysts anticipate that Zoetis Inc. will post 6.07 earnings per share for the current year.

Zoetis Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, June 3rd. Investors of record on Monday, April 21st will be given a dividend of $0.50 per share. The ex-dividend date is Monday, April 21st. This represents a $2.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.27%. Zoetis’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 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.