Van ECK Associates Corp Sells 76,470 Shares of Zoetis Inc. (NYSE:ZTS)

Van ECK Associates Corp lessened its stake in shares of Zoetis Inc. (NYSE:ZTS) by 11.7% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 576,118 shares of the company’s stock after selling 76,470 shares during the quarter. Van ECK Associates Corp owned about 0.13% of Zoetis worth $113,708,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other large investors have also recently made changes to their positions in ZTS. Cary Street Partners Investment Advisory LLC grew its position in Zoetis by 7.4% in the 3rd quarter. Cary Street Partners Investment Advisory LLC now owns 93,735 shares of the company’s stock worth $16,308,000 after purchasing an additional 6,457 shares during the period. Peak Financial Advisors LLC bought a new stake in shares of Zoetis in the fourth quarter worth $2,776,000. BLB&B Advisors LLC increased its position in Zoetis by 1.9% during the third quarter. BLB&B Advisors LLC now owns 60,872 shares of the company’s stock valued at $10,591,000 after acquiring an additional 1,107 shares during the last quarter. Ninety One UK Ltd lifted its holdings in Zoetis by 13.1% in the fourth quarter. Ninety One UK Ltd now owns 108,293 shares of the company’s stock valued at $21,374,000 after acquiring an additional 12,537 shares during the period. Finally, Raymond James Financial Services Advisors Inc. boosted its position in Zoetis by 10.9% in the fourth quarter. Raymond James Financial Services Advisors Inc. now owns 183,564 shares of the company’s stock worth $36,230,000 after purchasing an additional 17,976 shares during the last quarter. 92.80% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Zoetis Price Performance

Shares of ZTS traded down $0.49 during midday trading on Tuesday, hitting $159.21. 1,032,335 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 3,114,613. The stock has a market cap of $72.82 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 31.60, a PEG ratio of 2.42 and a beta of 0.85. The firm has a 50 day moving average of $171.21 and a 200-day moving average of $179.23. 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 $144.80 and a 52 week high of $201.92.

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

Zoetis Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, June 4th. Shareholders of record on Friday, April 19th will be given a dividend of $0.432 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, April 18th. This represents a $1.73 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.09%. Zoetis’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 34.12%.

Insider Activity

In related news, EVP Roxanne Lagano sold 363 shares of Zoetis stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, February 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $197.74, for a total transaction of $71,779.62. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 20,417 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $4,037,257.58. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Over the last ninety days, insiders sold 2,209 shares of company stock valued at $371,293. 0.16% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research firms recently issued reports on ZTS. StockNews.com downgraded shares of Zoetis from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, February 20th. Barclays decreased their target price on Zoetis from $260.00 to $230.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, April 23rd. Stifel Nicolaus decreased their target price on shares of Zoetis from $195.00 to $180.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday. The Goldman Sachs Group upped their price target on shares of Zoetis from $190.00 to $226.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, January 17th. Finally, Piper Sandler restated an “overweight” rating and set a $195.00 price objective (down from $220.00) on shares of Zoetis in a research report on Tuesday, April 16th. Eight analysts have rated the stock with a buy rating, Based on data from MarketBeat, Zoetis presently has an average rating of “Buy” and an average target price of $216.13.

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.