Zoetis Inc. (NYSE:ZTS) Receives Consensus Rating of “Buy” from Analysts

Shares of Zoetis Inc. (NYSE:ZTS) have received an average recommendation of “Buy” from the seven ratings firms that are covering the stock, MarketBeat Ratings reports. Seven research analysts have rated the stock with a buy recommendation. The average 1-year target price among brokers that have covered the stock in the last year is $221.75.

A number of equities analysts recently issued reports on ZTS shares. Piper Sandler reaffirmed an “overweight” rating and set a $195.00 target price (down previously from $220.00) on shares of Zoetis in a research report on Tuesday. Barclays boosted their price target on shares of Zoetis from $255.00 to $260.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Wednesday, February 14th. StockNews.com lowered shares of Zoetis from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, February 20th. Stifel Nicolaus lowered their price target on shares of Zoetis from $215.00 to $195.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, April 2nd. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group boosted their price target on shares of Zoetis from $190.00 to $226.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, January 17th.

Insider Activity

In other news, EVP Roxanne Lagano sold 363 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Monday, February 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $197.74, for a total value of $71,779.62. Following the sale, the executive vice president now owns 20,417 shares in the company, valued at approximately $4,037,257.58. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. In the last quarter, insiders have sold 2,209 shares of company stock worth $371,293. Corporate insiders own 0.12% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in ZTS. Hohimer Wealth Management LLC grew its holdings in Zoetis by 1.2% during the 4th quarter. Hohimer Wealth Management LLC now owns 4,386 shares of the company’s stock worth $866,000 after acquiring an additional 52 shares during the last quarter. Enterprise Financial Services Corp grew its holdings in Zoetis by 2.3% during the 1st quarter. Enterprise Financial Services Corp now owns 2,446 shares of the company’s stock worth $407,000 after acquiring an additional 55 shares during the last quarter. Forum Financial Management LP grew its holdings in Zoetis by 0.8% during the 4th quarter. Forum Financial Management LP now owns 7,386 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,458,000 after acquiring an additional 56 shares during the last quarter. Angeles Wealth Management LLC grew its holdings in Zoetis by 3.5% during the 4th quarter. Angeles Wealth Management LLC now owns 1,640 shares of the company’s stock worth $324,000 after acquiring an additional 56 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Prossimo Advisors LLC grew its holdings in Zoetis by 1.7% during the 4th quarter. Prossimo Advisors LLC now owns 3,498 shares of the company’s stock worth $690,000 after acquiring an additional 57 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 92.80% of the company’s stock.

Zoetis Trading Up 1.1 %

Shares of ZTS stock opened at $153.11 on Friday. Zoetis has a 1 year low of $148.48 and a 1 year high of $201.92. The firm’s fifty day simple moving average is $176.49 and its 200 day simple moving average is $180.20. The firm has a market capitalization of $70.03 billion, a P/E ratio of 30.20, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.34 and a beta of 0.85. The company has a current ratio of 3.36, a quick ratio of 2.00 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.32.

Zoetis (NYSE:ZTS) last announced its earnings results on Tuesday, February 13th. The company reported $1.24 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.32 by ($0.08). Zoetis had a return on equity of 51.25% and a net margin of 27.43%. The company had revenue of $2.21 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.19 billion. During the same period last year, the firm posted $1.15 EPS. The company’s revenue was up 8.5% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, sell-side analysts predict that Zoetis will post 5.79 EPS for the current year.

Zoetis Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, June 4th. Stockholders 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 dividend yield of 1.13%. Zoetis’s dividend payout ratio is presently 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.