Highland Capital Management LLC Trims Position in Zoetis Inc. (NYSE:ZTS)

Highland Capital Management LLC decreased its holdings in shares of Zoetis Inc. (NYSE:ZTS) by 0.2% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 39,571 shares of the company’s stock after selling 68 shares during the quarter. Highland Capital Management LLC’s holdings in Zoetis were worth $7,810,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of the company. Columbia Trust Co 01012016 bought a new stake in Zoetis in the 4th quarter worth approximately $213,000. Roberts Wealth Advisors LLC lifted its position in Zoetis by 1.2% in the 4th quarter. Roberts Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 23,602 shares of the company’s stock worth $4,658,000 after buying an additional 273 shares during the last quarter. Sandy Cove Advisors LLC lifted its position in Zoetis by 27.5% in the 4th quarter. Sandy Cove Advisors LLC now owns 1,556 shares of the company’s stock worth $307,000 after buying an additional 336 shares during the last quarter. Douglas Lane & Associates LLC lifted its position in Zoetis by 8.0% in the 4th quarter. Douglas Lane & Associates LLC now owns 7,739 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,528,000 after buying an additional 573 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Simon Quick Advisors LLC bought a new stake in Zoetis in the 4th quarter worth approximately $413,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 92.80% of the company’s stock.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, EVP Roxanne Lagano sold 363 shares of the stock in a transaction on Monday, February 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $197.74, for a total value of $71,779.62. Following the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 20,417 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $4,037,257.58. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Insiders have sold a total of 2,209 shares of company stock valued at $408,453 over the last ninety days. Company insiders own 0.12% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

ZTS has been the subject of a number of recent research reports. Jefferies Financial Group restated a “buy” rating and issued a $230.00 target price on shares of Zoetis in a research report on Tuesday, December 19th. StockNews.com downgraded Zoetis from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, February 20th. Barclays boosted their price objective on Zoetis from $255.00 to $260.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, February 14th. Piper Sandler boosted their price objective on Zoetis from $215.00 to $220.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Tuesday, February 20th. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group boosted their price objective on Zoetis from $190.00 to $226.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, January 17th. Nine equities research analysts have rated the stock with a buy rating, According to MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of “Buy” and an average target price of $224.33.

Zoetis Price Performance

ZTS opened at $168.51 on Thursday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.32, a quick ratio of 2.00 and a current ratio of 3.36. Zoetis Inc. has a 52-week low of $151.03 and a 52-week high of $201.92. The stock has a market capitalization of $77.16 billion, a PE ratio of 33.24, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.53 and a beta of 0.87. The stock’s 50 day moving average price is $186.36 and its 200-day moving average price is $182.34.

Zoetis (NYSE:ZTS) last posted its earnings results on Tuesday, February 13th. The company reported $1.24 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.32 by ($0.08). The business had revenue of $2.21 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $2.19 billion. Zoetis had a net margin of 27.43% and a return on equity of 51.25%. Zoetis’s quarterly revenue was up 8.5% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the firm posted $1.15 earnings per share. On average, equities research analysts predict that Zoetis Inc. will post 5.8 EPS for the current year.

Zoetis Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, June 4th. Investors of record on Friday, April 19th will be paid a $0.432 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, April 18th. This represents a $1.73 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.03%. Zoetis’s payout ratio is 34.12%.

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.