Taikang Asset Management Hong Kong Co Ltd Decreases Stake in Zoetis Inc. (NYSE:ZTS)

Taikang Asset Management Hong Kong Co Ltd lowered its holdings in Zoetis Inc. (NYSE:ZTS) by 50.0% in the fourth quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The fund owned 25,940 shares of the company’s stock after selling 25,940 shares during the quarter. Taikang Asset Management Hong Kong Co Ltd’s holdings in Zoetis were worth $4,226,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in ZTS. Vanguard Group Inc. lifted its stake in shares of Zoetis by 0.3% in the fourth quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 41,366,877 shares of the company’s stock valued at $6,739,905,000 after purchasing an additional 120,158 shares during the period. State Street Corp lifted its position in shares of Zoetis by 0.5% during the 3rd quarter. State Street Corp now owns 19,779,344 shares of the company’s stock valued at $3,864,488,000 after acquiring an additional 95,856 shares during the period. Geode Capital Management LLC boosted its stake in shares of Zoetis by 1.8% during the 3rd quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 10,427,760 shares of the company’s stock worth $2,030,813,000 after acquiring an additional 185,364 shares in the last quarter. Polen Capital Management LLC grew its holdings in shares of Zoetis by 17.5% in the 4th quarter. Polen Capital Management LLC now owns 7,483,194 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,219,237,000 after acquiring an additional 1,116,541 shares during the period. Finally, Bank of New York Mellon Corp increased its stake in Zoetis by 8.5% in the 4th quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 5,561,910 shares of the company’s stock valued at $906,202,000 after purchasing an additional 433,429 shares in the last quarter. 92.80% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Activity at Zoetis

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

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research firms have commented on ZTS. UBS Group initiated coverage on Zoetis in a research report on Monday, December 9th. They set a “neutral” rating and a $196.00 target price on the stock. Morgan Stanley reduced their target price on Zoetis from $243.00 to $238.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, February 14th. Stifel Nicolaus dropped their price target on Zoetis from $210.00 to $180.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, January 7th. Leerink Partnrs upgraded Zoetis to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Monday, December 2nd. Finally, Leerink Partners started coverage on shares of Zoetis in a research note on Monday, December 2nd. They issued an “outperform” rating and a $215.00 target price for the company. One analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating, ten have given a buy rating and two have issued a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Buy” and a consensus target price of $215.90.

Zoetis Stock Up 0.1 %

Shares of NYSE ZTS opened at $163.22 on Tuesday. The company has a quick ratio of 1.08, a current ratio of 1.75 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.09. The stock has a market capitalization of $73.09 billion, a PE ratio of 29.84, a P/E/G ratio of 2.78 and a beta of 0.94. The firm has a fifty day moving average of $166.70 and a 200-day moving average of $175.22. Zoetis Inc. has a 52-week low of $144.80 and a 52-week high of $200.33.

Zoetis (NYSE:ZTS) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, February 13th. The company reported $1.40 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.37 by $0.03. The company had revenue of $2.32 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.30 billion. Zoetis had a return on equity of 53.82% and a net margin of 26.86%. On average, analysts anticipate that Zoetis Inc. will post 6.07 EPS for the current year.

Zoetis Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, June 3rd. Shareholders of record on Monday, April 21st will be paid a dividend of $0.50 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, April 21st. This represents a $2.00 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.23%. Zoetis’s dividend payout ratio is currently 36.56%.

Zoetis 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.