CI Investments Inc. Reduces Stock Position in Zoetis Inc. $ZTS

CI Investments Inc. lessened its position in Zoetis Inc. (NYSE:ZTS) by 3.3% during the first quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The fund owned 341,911 shares of the company’s stock after selling 11,687 shares during the period. CI Investments Inc.’s holdings in Zoetis were worth $40,417,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of the company. Prosperity Bancshares Inc purchased a new stake in shares of Zoetis during the fourth quarter worth about $25,000. Cassaday & Co Wealth Management LLC bought a new stake in shares of Zoetis in the first quarter worth about $28,000. Lodestone Wealth Management LLC purchased a new position in Zoetis during the 4th quarter valued at about $30,000. Root Financial Partners LLC increased its holdings in Zoetis by 66.5% during the 1st quarter. Root Financial Partners LLC now owns 258 shares of the company’s stock valued at $30,000 after purchasing an additional 103 shares during the period. Finally, Elyxium Wealth LLC bought a new position in Zoetis during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $32,000. 92.80% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Insider Activity at Zoetis

In other news, Director Paul Bisaro acquired 2,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, May 13th. The stock was acquired at an average price of $75.88 per share, for a total transaction of $151,760.00. Following the completion of the acquisition, the director owned 27,862 shares in the company, valued at $2,114,168.56. This trade represents a 7.73% increase in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, Director Frank A. Damelio bought 6,650 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, May 13th. The shares were acquired at an average price of $75.39 per share, for a total transaction of $501,343.50. Following the acquisition, the director owned 21,458 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,617,718.62. This represents a 44.91% increase in their position. Additional details regarding this purchase are available in the official SEC disclosure. Insiders have bought 11,650 shares of company stock worth $886,384 over the last ninety days. 0.22% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities research analysts have weighed in on ZTS shares. Citigroup dropped their price objective on Zoetis from $145.00 to $112.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Monday, May 18th. Stifel Nicolaus reduced their target price on Zoetis from $95.00 to $85.00 and set a “hold” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, June 26th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. decreased their target price on Zoetis from $190.00 to $130.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Friday, May 8th. UBS Group dropped their price target on Zoetis from $130.00 to $99.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, May 8th. Finally, Weiss Ratings cut shares of Zoetis from a “sell (d+)” rating to a “sell (d)” rating in a report on Friday, June 12th. Eight investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, eight have given a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $120.83.

More Zoetis News

Here are the key news stories impacting Zoetis this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Unusual options activity showed traders buying 8,095 call options, well above the normal daily volume of about 5,087, suggesting some investors are positioning for a rebound. MarketBeat options activity report

Zoetis Price Performance

ZTS stock opened at $75.26 on Wednesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.80, a current ratio of 3.15 and a quick ratio of 1.91. Zoetis Inc. has a 1 year low of $71.47 and a 1 year high of $160.48. The firm has a 50-day moving average of $77.29 and a 200 day moving average of $105.18. The company has a market cap of $31.55 billion, a P/E ratio of 12.48, a PEG ratio of 1.19 and a beta of 0.75.

Zoetis (NYSE:ZTS) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, May 7th. The company reported $1.53 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.60 by ($0.07). Zoetis had a net margin of 27.80% and a return on equity of 66.85%. The firm had revenue of $2.26 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.30 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $1.48 earnings per share. The business’s revenue was up 2.9% compared to the same quarter last year. Zoetis has set its FY 2026 guidance at 6.850-7.000 EPS. On average, sell-side analysts forecast that Zoetis Inc. will post 6.87 EPS for the current year.

Zoetis Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, September 1st. Investors of record on Monday, July 20th will be given a dividend of $0.53 per share. The ex-dividend date is Monday, July 20th. This represents a $2.12 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.8%. Zoetis’s payout ratio is currently 35.16%.

Zoetis Profile

Zoetis Inc (NYSE: ZTS) is a global animal health company that develops, manufactures and markets a broad portfolio of products and services for companion animals and livestock. The company’s offerings include pharmaceuticals, vaccines and biologics, parasiticides and anti-infectives, as well as diagnostic instruments, consumables and laboratory testing services. Zoetis serves the veterinary community, livestock producers and other animal-health customers with products designed to prevent, detect and treat disease and to support animal productivity and welfare.

Zoetis traces its roots to the animal health business of Pfizer and became an independent, publicly traded company following a 2013 separation and initial public offering.