Zoetis (NYSE:ZTS) Cut to “Hold” at StockNews.com

Zoetis (NYSE:ZTS) was downgraded by research analysts at StockNews.com from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report released on Tuesday.

Several other research analysts have also weighed in on ZTS. Leerink Partners initiated coverage on shares of Zoetis in a report on Monday, December 2nd. They set an “outperform” rating and a $215.00 price objective for the company. Morgan Stanley cut their price objective on Zoetis from $243.00 to $238.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, February 14th. Leerink Partnrs upgraded Zoetis to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Monday, December 2nd. Piper Sandler dropped their price target on Zoetis from $210.00 to $200.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, February 10th. Finally, Barclays raised their price objective on Zoetis from $242.00 to $244.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday, February 14th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, nine have given a buy rating and two have given a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Zoetis currently has an average rating of “Buy” and an average price target of $215.40.

Zoetis Stock Down 2.1 %

Shares of NYSE ZTS opened at $164.99 on Tuesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.09, a quick ratio of 1.08 and a current ratio of 1.75. Zoetis has a 1 year low of $144.80 and a 1 year high of $200.53. The stock’s 50-day simple moving average is $166.22 and its 200-day simple moving average is $177.58. The firm has a market cap of $73.88 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 30.16, a PEG ratio of 2.78 and a beta of 0.90.

Zoetis (NYSE:ZTS) last released its earnings results on Thursday, February 13th. The company reported $1.40 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.37 by $0.03. Zoetis had a return on equity of 53.82% and a net margin of 26.86%. The company had revenue of $2.32 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $2.30 billion. As a group, equities analysts anticipate that Zoetis will post 6.07 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Transactions at Zoetis

In related news, EVP Roxanne Lagano sold 326 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, February 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $171.18, for a total value of $55,804.68. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 16,107 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,757,196.26. This represents a 1.98 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Insiders own 0.16% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of Zoetis

Several hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in ZTS. Norges Bank bought a new stake in shares of Zoetis during the fourth quarter valued at about $824,321,000. Mizuho Securities USA LLC increased its stake in Zoetis by 13,726.9% during the 3rd quarter. Mizuho Securities USA LLC now owns 4,865,000 shares of the company’s stock valued at $950,524,000 after buying an additional 4,829,815 shares during the period. Wellington Management Group LLP raised its position in shares of Zoetis by 78.5% during the 4th quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 6,958,543 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,133,755,000 after buying an additional 3,059,255 shares in the last quarter. Raymond James Financial Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Zoetis in the 4th quarter worth approximately $196,651,000. Finally, Polen Capital Management LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Zoetis by 17.5% in the fourth quarter. Polen Capital Management LLC now owns 7,483,194 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,219,237,000 after acquiring an additional 1,116,541 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 92.80% of the company’s stock.

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.