Profit At Zoetis Will Miss Wall Street's Expectations Next Year

Shares of the company, which were halted pending news, are down slightly as the company is holding its investor day presentation.

In a release this afternoon, the company said that in 2015 it expects to report adjusted earnings per share of $1.61-$1.68, below the $1.71 Wall Street had been looking for.

The company said that in 2015, revenue is expected to come between $4.85-$4.95 billion, just a hair below the $4.96 billion expected by Wall Street.

In a statement, the company's CFO CFO Paul Herendeen said, "Below the revenue line, we expect to generate modest improvements in gross margin in the near term before accelerating after 2017. After 2015, we expect to keep our operating expense growth in the range of the inflation rate. Considering all of these factors, we believe Zoetis is a company that can grow adjusted net income in the low, double-digits over the long term."

Earlier on Tuesday, the company announced a $500 million share repurchase plan.

Zoetis is an animal health company in which activist hedge fund manager Bill Ackman recently took a 10% stake. Many see the company seen as a potential takeover target.

Yesterday, Allergan - the Botox-maker that Ackman had taken a large stake in as part of his effort to acquire the company with pharmaceutical company Valeant - agreed to be acquired by Actavis in a deal worth about $219 per Allergan share.

That agreement put Ackman in-line to turn a profit north of $2 billion.