Mechanics Bank Trust Department Has $1.91 Million Position in Zoetis Inc. (NYSE:ZTS)

Mechanics Bank Trust Department lessened its stake in Zoetis Inc. (NYSE:ZTS) by 1.7% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 11,691 shares of the company’s stock after selling 206 shares during the quarter. Mechanics Bank Trust Department’s holdings in Zoetis were worth $1,905,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Pensionfund Sabic raised its position in Zoetis by 55.6% during the fourth quarter. Pensionfund Sabic now owns 11,200 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,825,000 after acquiring an additional 4,000 shares in the last quarter. PFW Advisors LLC bought a new stake in Zoetis during the fourth quarter worth $1,764,000. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised its position in shares of Zoetis by 10.6% in the third quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 2,916,539 shares of the company’s stock valued at $569,834,000 after purchasing an additional 279,092 shares during the period. Simplify Asset Management Inc. bought a new position in shares of Zoetis in the third quarter valued at about $11,684,000. Finally, B&L Asset Management LLC bought a new position in shares of Zoetis in the third quarter valued at about $563,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 92.80% of the company’s stock.

Zoetis Price Performance

ZTS opened at $166.01 on Monday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.26, a current ratio of 3.69 and a quick ratio of 2.27. The company has a market capitalization of $74.90 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 31.20, a P/E/G ratio of 2.51 and a beta of 0.89. The firm’s fifty day moving average price is $170.93 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $179.98. Zoetis Inc. has a 1 year low of $144.80 and a 1 year high of $200.53.

Zoetis (NYSE:ZTS) last released its earnings results on Monday, November 4th. The company reported $1.58 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.46 by $0.12. Zoetis had a return on equity of 51.98% and a net margin of 26.55%. The company had revenue of $2.40 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $2.29 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the business posted $1.36 EPS. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 11.6% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, analysts anticipate that Zoetis Inc. will post 5.91 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Zoetis Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, March 4th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, January 21st will be given a dividend of $0.50 per share. This is a boost from Zoetis’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.43. This represents a $2.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.20%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, January 21st. Zoetis’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 32.52%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities analysts recently commented on the stock. Leerink Partnrs upgraded shares of Zoetis to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Monday, December 2nd. Stifel Nicolaus decreased their price target on shares of Zoetis from $210.00 to $180.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, January 7th. Leerink Partners assumed coverage on shares of Zoetis in a research note on Monday, December 2nd. They issued an “outperform” rating and a $215.00 price target on the stock. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their price target on shares of Zoetis from $225.00 to $230.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday, October 11th. Finally, UBS Group began coverage on shares of Zoetis in a research note on Monday, December 9th. They issued a “neutral” rating and a $196.00 price target on the stock. One research 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’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Buy” and a consensus price target of $211.89.

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.