AMI Asset Management Corp Sells 10,156 Shares of Zoetis Inc. (NYSE:ZTS)

AMI Asset Management Corp reduced its position in shares of Zoetis Inc. (NYSE:ZTS) by 2.9% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 339,789 shares of the company’s stock after selling 10,156 shares during the quarter. Zoetis accounts for approximately 2.9% of AMI Asset Management Corp’s holdings, making the stock its 12th biggest position. AMI Asset Management Corp owned about 0.08% of Zoetis worth $55,362,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the business. Darwin Wealth Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Zoetis in the 3rd quarter worth $31,000. First Personal Financial Services bought a new stake in Zoetis during the third quarter valued at about $33,000. Capital Performance Advisors LLP bought a new stake in Zoetis during the third quarter valued at about $33,000. Dunhill Financial LLC increased its position in Zoetis by 80.6% in the third quarter. Dunhill Financial LLC now owns 168 shares of the company’s stock worth $33,000 after buying an additional 75 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Quarry LP raised its stake in shares of Zoetis by 273.2% in the second quarter. Quarry LP now owns 209 shares of the company’s stock worth $36,000 after buying an additional 153 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 92.80% of the company’s stock.

Zoetis Trading Down 2.0 %

Shares of NYSE ZTS opened at $166.01 on Tuesday. Zoetis Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $144.80 and a fifty-two week high of $200.53. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.26, a quick ratio of 2.27 and a current ratio of 3.69. The company has a market cap of $74.90 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 31.20, a PEG ratio of 2.55 and a beta of 0.89. The business’s 50 day moving average price is $170.73 and its 200-day moving average price is $179.95.

Zoetis (NYSE:ZTS) last issued its earnings results on Monday, November 4th. The company reported $1.58 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.46 by $0.12. The firm had revenue of $2.40 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.29 billion. Zoetis had a net margin of 26.55% and a return on equity of 51.98%. The business’s revenue was up 11.6% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned $1.36 earnings per share. On average, sell-side analysts expect that Zoetis Inc. will post 5.9 earnings per share for the current year.

Zoetis Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, March 4th. Investors of record on Tuesday, January 21st will be paid a $0.50 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, January 21st. This represents a $2.00 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.20%. This is a boost from Zoetis’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.43. Zoetis’s dividend payout ratio is 32.52%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities research analysts recently issued reports on the stock. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their target price on shares of Zoetis from $225.00 to $230.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, October 11th. Leerink Partners started coverage on shares of Zoetis in a report on Monday, December 2nd. They issued an “outperform” rating and a $215.00 target price for the company. UBS Group assumed coverage on Zoetis in a report on Monday, December 9th. They set a “neutral” rating and a $196.00 price target on the stock. Stifel Nicolaus dropped their price objective on Zoetis from $210.00 to $180.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, January 7th. Finally, Leerink Partnrs upgraded Zoetis to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Monday, December 2nd. One analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating, nine have given a buy rating and two have issued a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Buy” and a consensus price target of $211.89.

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.