Trust Co. of Vermont Raises Stock Position in Zoetis Inc. (NYSE:ZTS)

Trust Co. of Vermont grew its position in Zoetis Inc. (NYSE:ZTS) by 24.8% in the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 1,123 shares of the company’s stock after buying an additional 223 shares during the period. Trust Co. of Vermont’s holdings in Zoetis were worth $219,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the company. Sarasin & Partners LLP grew its position in Zoetis by 546.3% in the second quarter. Sarasin & Partners LLP now owns 2,253,590 shares of the company’s stock worth $390,682,000 after acquiring an additional 1,904,899 shares during the period. Swedbank AB acquired a new position in shares of Zoetis in the 1st quarter valued at $210,815,000. Marshall Wace LLP grew its holdings in shares of Zoetis by 7,608.6% during the 2nd quarter. Marshall Wace LLP now owns 835,684 shares of the company’s stock worth $144,874,000 after purchasing an additional 824,843 shares during the period. Vanguard Group Inc. increased its position in shares of Zoetis by 1.0% during the 1st quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 40,749,571 shares of the company’s stock worth $6,895,235,000 after purchasing an additional 414,605 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Canada Pension Plan Investment Board raised its holdings in Zoetis by 178.2% in the 1st quarter. Canada Pension Plan Investment Board now owns 639,352 shares of the company’s stock valued at $108,185,000 after buying an additional 409,522 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 92.80% of the company’s stock.

Zoetis Stock Up 1.2 %

Zoetis stock opened at $193.28 on Friday. The firm has a market capitalization of $88.19 billion, a P/E ratio of 37.24, a P/E/G ratio of 2.99 and a beta of 0.89. The company has a current ratio of 3.45, a quick ratio of 2.09 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.32. Zoetis Inc. has a twelve month low of $144.80 and a twelve month high of $201.92. The stock’s fifty day simple moving average is $188.98 and its 200-day simple moving average is $177.07.

Zoetis (NYSE:ZTS) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, August 6th. The company reported $1.56 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.49 by $0.07. The company had revenue of $2.36 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.31 billion. Zoetis had a return on equity of 50.67% and a net margin of 26.29%. Zoetis’s revenue was up 8.3% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned $1.41 EPS. As a group, equities analysts expect that Zoetis Inc. will post 5.83 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Zoetis Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, December 3rd. Investors of record on Thursday, October 31st will be paid a $0.432 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, October 31st. This represents a $1.73 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.89%. Zoetis’s dividend payout ratio is currently 33.14%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities research analysts have weighed in on the stock. BTIG Research lifted their price target on shares of Zoetis from $220.00 to $225.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, August 12th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their price objective on shares of Zoetis from $225.00 to $230.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday, October 11th. Argus raised Zoetis to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Friday, August 9th. Stifel Nicolaus upped their price target on Zoetis from $200.00 to $210.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, September 18th. Finally, Piper Sandler lifted their price objective on Zoetis from $195.00 to $210.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, August 14th. Ten equities research analysts have rated the stock with a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Buy” and an average target price of $221.44.

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.