Beacon Investment Advisory Services Inc. Has $27 Million Stock Position in Zoetis Inc. (NYSE:ZTS)

Beacon Investment Advisory Services Inc. raised its holdings in Zoetis Inc. (NYSE:ZTS) by 15.1% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 165,694 shares of the company’s stock after acquiring an additional 21,750 shares during the period. Zoetis comprises 1.2% of Beacon Investment Advisory Services Inc.’s holdings, making the stock its 29th biggest holding. Beacon Investment Advisory Services Inc.’s holdings in Zoetis were worth $26,997,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the business. Darwin Wealth Management LLC bought a new stake in Zoetis during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $31,000. First Personal Financial Services bought a new stake in shares of Zoetis in the 3rd quarter valued at $33,000. Capital Performance Advisors LLP bought a new stake in Zoetis in the third quarter worth approximately $33,000. Dunhill Financial LLC lifted its stake in Zoetis by 80.6% in the third quarter. Dunhill Financial LLC now owns 168 shares of the company’s stock valued at $33,000 after buying an additional 75 shares during the period. Finally, Quarry LP lifted its position in shares of Zoetis by 273.2% during the 2nd quarter. Quarry LP now owns 209 shares of the company’s stock valued at $36,000 after acquiring an additional 153 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 92.80% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research firms have weighed in on ZTS. Stifel Nicolaus decreased their price target on shares of Zoetis from $210.00 to $180.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, January 7th. Leerink Partners initiated coverage on Zoetis in a research note on Monday, December 2nd. They issued an “outperform” rating and a $215.00 target price on the stock. Leerink Partnrs raised Zoetis to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Monday, December 2nd. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their price objective on 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 initiated coverage on shares of Zoetis in a report on Monday, December 9th. They issued a “neutral” rating and a $196.00 price objective for the company. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating, nine have issued a buy rating and two have issued a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of “Buy” and an average target price of $211.89.

Zoetis Price Performance

Shares of NYSE ZTS opened at $166.64 on Thursday. Zoetis Inc. has a twelve month low of $144.80 and a twelve month high of $200.53. The firm has a market capitalization of $75.18 billion, a P/E ratio of 31.32, a P/E/G ratio of 2.58 and a beta of 0.89. The company has a quick ratio of 2.27, a current ratio of 3.69 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.26. The stock’s 50-day simple moving average is $170.39 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $179.80.

Zoetis (NYSE:ZTS) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Monday, November 4th. The company reported $1.58 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.46 by $0.12. Zoetis had a net margin of 26.55% and a return on equity of 51.98%. The firm had revenue of $2.40 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.29 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the business posted $1.36 EPS. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 11.6% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, equities analysts anticipate that Zoetis Inc. will post 5.9 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Zoetis Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, March 4th. Investors of record on Tuesday, January 21st will be issued a dividend of $0.50 per share. This is a positive change 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 is currently 37.59%.

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.