Phillips Wealth Planners LLC Acquires New Position in Zoetis Inc. (NYSE:ZTS)

Phillips Wealth Planners LLC acquired a new stake in Zoetis Inc. (NYSE:ZTS) during the first quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The fund acquired 1,503 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $247,000.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Rakuten Securities Inc. raised its stake in Zoetis by 5,533.3% in the 4th quarter. Rakuten Securities Inc. now owns 169 shares of the company’s stock valued at $28,000 after acquiring an additional 166 shares during the period. Navigoe LLC bought a new stake in Zoetis in the 4th quarter valued at about $30,000. Murphy & Mullick Capital Management Corp bought a new stake in Zoetis in the 4th quarter valued at about $44,000. Sound Income Strategies LLC raised its stake in Zoetis by 141.4% in the 1st quarter. Sound Income Strategies LLC now owns 280 shares of the company’s stock valued at $46,000 after acquiring an additional 164 shares during the period. Finally, Bfsg LLC increased its position in shares of Zoetis by 614.6% during the first quarter. Bfsg LLC now owns 293 shares of the company’s stock valued at $48,000 after buying an additional 252 shares during the period. 92.80% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Zoetis Trading Down 0.2%

Shares of ZTS opened at $157.41 on Thursday. The firm’s 50 day simple moving average is $160.10 and its 200 day simple moving average is $163.02. The company has a market capitalization of $70.08 billion, a P/E ratio of 28.26, a P/E/G ratio of 2.62 and a beta of 0.94. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.12, a current ratio of 1.74 and a quick ratio of 1.04. Zoetis Inc. has a 1-year low of $139.70 and a 1-year high of $200.33.

Zoetis (NYSE:ZTS) last announced its earnings results on Tuesday, May 6th. The company reported $1.48 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.40 by $0.08. The business had revenue of $2.22 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.20 billion. Zoetis had a net margin of 27.12% and a return on equity of 55.48%. Zoetis’s quarterly revenue was up 1.4% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the firm posted $1.38 earnings per share. Sell-side analysts forecast that Zoetis Inc. will post 6.07 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Zoetis Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, September 3rd. Shareholders of record on Friday, July 18th will be given a dividend of $0.50 per share. This represents a $2.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.27%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, July 18th. Zoetis’s payout ratio is currently 35.91%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Zoetis

In other news, EVP Roxanne Lagano sold 652 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, June 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $170.00, for a total value of $110,840.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 15,129 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,571,930. This trade represents a 4.13% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Company insiders own 0.18% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities research analysts have recently issued reports on the stock. Piper Sandler increased their price target on shares of Zoetis from $205.00 to $210.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Monday, May 12th. UBS Group lowered their price target on shares of Zoetis from $189.00 to $170.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, May 7th. Wall Street Zen raised shares of Zoetis from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, March 7th. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus downgraded shares of Zoetis from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and lowered their price target for the stock from $165.00 to $160.00 in a report on Wednesday, June 18th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, seven have given a buy rating and two have assigned a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Buy” and a consensus price target of $212.13.

About Zoetis

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.