Stifel Nicolaus Cuts Zoetis (NYSE:ZTS) Price Target to $165.00

Zoetis (NYSE:ZTS) had its price target cut by Stifel Nicolaus from $180.00 to $165.00 in a research report sent to investors on Monday,Benzinga reports. They currently have a buy rating on the stock.

A number of other equities analysts also recently commented on the stock. Piper Sandler upped their target price on shares of Zoetis from $200.00 to $205.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Thursday, February 27th. Barclays raised their target price on shares of Zoetis from $242.00 to $244.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday, February 14th. Morgan Stanley lowered their price target on shares of Zoetis from $243.00 to $238.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, February 14th. Finally, StockNews.com upgraded Zoetis from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, March 7th. One analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating, ten have given a buy rating and two have given a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Zoetis has an average rating of “Buy” and a consensus price target of $214.40.

Zoetis Stock Performance

Zoetis stock opened at $150.66 on Monday. Zoetis has a twelve month low of $139.70 and a twelve month high of $200.33. The company has a quick ratio of 1.08, a current ratio of 1.75 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.09. The company’s 50-day moving average price is $162.01 and its 200-day moving average price is $170.92. The company has a market cap of $67.22 billion, a PE ratio of 27.54, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.78 and a beta of 0.92.

Zoetis (NYSE:ZTS) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, February 13th. The company reported $1.40 earnings per share (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 business had revenue of $2.32 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.30 billion. On average, equities research analysts forecast that Zoetis will post 6.07 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Zoetis Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, June 3rd. Investors of record on Monday, April 21st will be paid a $0.50 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Monday, April 21st. This represents a $2.00 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.33%. Zoetis’s dividend payout ratio is presently 36.56%.

Insider Activity

In other Zoetis news, EVP Roxanne Lagano sold 326 shares of Zoetis stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, February 11th. The shares were sold at an average price of $171.18, for a total transaction of $55,804.68. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 16,107 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,757,196.26. The trade was a 1.98 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, Director Willie M. Reed sold 1,210 shares of the stock in a transaction on Tuesday, March 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $166.14, for a total value of $201,029.40. Following the transaction, the director now owns 11,245 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,868,244.30. This represents a 9.71 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 1,862 shares of company stock worth $312,254 over the last 90 days. 0.16% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Institutional Trading of Zoetis

Several hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Atlantic Edge Private Wealth Management LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Zoetis by 482.8% in the 4th quarter. Atlantic Edge Private Wealth Management LLC now owns 169 shares of the company’s stock valued at $28,000 after buying an additional 140 shares in the last quarter. Rakuten Securities Inc. grew its holdings in shares of Zoetis by 5,533.3% during the fourth quarter. Rakuten Securities Inc. now owns 169 shares of the company’s stock worth $28,000 after purchasing an additional 166 shares during the last quarter. Navigoe LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Zoetis during the fourth quarter worth about $30,000. Murphy & Mullick Capital Management Corp acquired a new stake in shares of Zoetis in the 4th quarter valued at about $44,000. Finally, Asset Planning Inc purchased a new position in Zoetis during the 4th quarter worth approximately $58,000. 92.80% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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.