Aviance Capital Partners LLC Trims Stake in Zoetis Inc. (NYSE:ZTS)

Aviance Capital Partners LLC lessened its position in Zoetis Inc. (NYSE:ZTS) by 4.7% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 21,684 shares of the company’s stock after selling 1,073 shares during the quarter. Zoetis accounts for 0.9% of Aviance Capital Partners LLC’s portfolio, making the stock its 27th largest position. Aviance Capital Partners LLC’s holdings in Zoetis were worth $4,280,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Blue Bell Private Wealth Management LLC grew its stake in shares of Zoetis by 222.5% during the fourth quarter. Blue Bell Private Wealth Management LLC now owns 129 shares of the company’s stock valued at $25,000 after buying an additional 89 shares during the last quarter. Independence Bank of Kentucky grew its position in Zoetis by 371.4% in the 4th quarter. Independence Bank of Kentucky now owns 165 shares of the company’s stock valued at $33,000 after acquiring an additional 130 shares during the last quarter. Ramirez Asset Management Inc. purchased a new stake in Zoetis in the third quarter worth $35,000. First Financial Corp IN lifted its position in shares of Zoetis by 57.2% during the fourth quarter. First Financial Corp IN now owns 217 shares of the company’s stock worth $43,000 after purchasing an additional 79 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Bogart Wealth LLC lifted its position in shares of Zoetis by 188.9% during the third quarter. Bogart Wealth LLC now owns 260 shares of the company’s stock worth $45,000 after purchasing an additional 170 shares during the last quarter. 92.80% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, EVP Roxanne Lagano sold 923 shares of the stock in a transaction on Thursday, April 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $151.17, for a total transaction of $139,529.91. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now owns 14,800 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,237,316. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Over the last three months, insiders have sold 2,209 shares of company stock valued at $371,293. 0.16% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Zoetis Stock Down 0.7 %

Shares of ZTS traded down $1.12 during trading hours on Monday, hitting $165.95. The company had a trading volume of 3,080,329 shares, compared to its average volume of 3,177,335. The company has a current ratio of 3.33, a quick ratio of 1.94 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.30. The company has a market capitalization of $75.72 billion, a PE ratio of 31.98, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.62 and a beta of 0.86. Zoetis Inc. has a one year low of $144.80 and a one year high of $201.92. The company’s fifty day moving average price is $168.25 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $178.92.

Zoetis (NYSE:ZTS) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, May 2nd. The company reported $1.38 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.34 by $0.04. Zoetis had a net margin of 27.38% and a return on equity of 50.34%. The business had revenue of $2.19 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.14 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $1.31 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue was up 9.5% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, equities analysts forecast that Zoetis Inc. will post 5.77 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Zoetis Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, June 4th. Shareholders of record on Friday, April 19th will be paid a $0.432 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, April 18th. This represents a $1.73 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.04%. Zoetis’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 33.33%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research firms recently commented on ZTS. StockNews.com downgraded shares of Zoetis from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, February 20th. Barclays dropped their price objective on Zoetis from $260.00 to $230.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, April 23rd. Stifel Nicolaus decreased their target price on Zoetis from $195.00 to $180.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, April 30th. Piper Sandler reissued an “overweight” rating and set a $195.00 price target (down previously from $220.00) on shares of Zoetis in a research report on Tuesday, April 16th. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group decreased their price objective on Zoetis from $223.00 to $196.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Monday. Eight research analysts have rated the stock with a buy rating, According to MarketBeat, Zoetis has a consensus rating of “Buy” and a consensus target price of $212.38.

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.