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Zoetis (ZTS) to Report Q2 Earnings: What's in the Cards?

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Zoetis Inc. (ZTS - Free Report) is scheduled to report second-quarter 2023 results on Aug 8, before market open.

Zoetis has a mixed earnings surprise history so far. The bottom line surpassed estimates in one of the trailing four quarters, missed in two and met in the other. The company delivered a negative average earnings surprise of 0.23% in the same time frame.

Shares of ZTS have gained 28.3% in the year-to-date period compared with the industry’s 0.6% rise.

Zacks Investment Research
Image Source: Zacks Investment Research

Let's see how things might have shaped up in the soon-to-be-reported quarter.

Factors to Consider

The veterinary drugmaker derives most of its revenues from a diversified product portfolio of medicines and vaccines used to treat and protect livestock and companion animals. Zoetis’ remaining revenues are derived from its non-pharmaceutical product categories, such as nutritional and agribusiness, and products and services in biodevices, genetic tests and precision animal health.

The company reports business results under two geographical operating segments — the United States and International.

Second-quarter revenues in the United States segment are likely to have increased from the previous quarter. based on increasing sales of livestock products and new approvals. The top-line estimate for this segment is pegged at $1.17 billion.

Revenues from the International segment too have likely increased in the second quarter. The top-line estimate for this segment is pinned at $980 million.

Improved sales of Apoquel and Cytopoint brands must have boosted the dermatology portfolio in the second quarter. In June 2023, the FDA approved Apoquel Chewable tablets in the United States for controlling pruritus related to allergic dermatitis and control of atopic dermatitis in dogs at least 12 months of age. Apoquel chewable marks the first and only chewable treatment for the control of allergic itch and inflammation in dogs in the United States. This is likely to have increased sales of the product in the to-be-reported quarter.

Zoetis’ livestock products sales witnessed a 15% rise in the United States, in the last quarter due to an increase in cattle products sales as a result of improved product supply and growth across the beef implant portfolio. This is expected to have increased sales of livestock products in the to-be-reported quarter. 

However, ZTS’ Companion Animal business suffered a decline in revenues in the previous quarter, owing to distributor de-stocking across the portfolio and higher purchases in the fourth quarter of 2022, ahead of expected price increases, in the United States. In the International segment, the Companion Animal business witnessed growth, fueled by its products, Librela, Solensia and the Simparica Trio. This trend is likely to have continued in the to-be-reported quarter.

Early in May, Zoetis announced FDA approval for Librela, one of its mAb therapies, to control pain associated with osteoarthritis in dogs. The injection is the first and only injectable monoclonal antibody treatment for canine OA pain approved in the United States. This is expected to have contributed to the sales of the product in the second quarter.

Sales of poultry products in both geographic segments gained on the back of increased sales of vaccines despite a challenging economic condition in the United States and market expansion in several key geographies internationally. The trend is likely to have continued in the to-be-reported quarter. 

Sales of swine products have likely declined year over year due to lower disease prevalence.

Earnings Whisper

Our proven model does not conclusively predict an earnings beat for Zoetis this time around. The combination of a positive Earnings ESP and a Zacks Rank #1 (Strong Buy), 2 (Buy), or 3 (Hold) increases the odds of an earnings beat. That is not the case here, as you will see below. You can uncover the best stocks to buy or sell before they're reported with our Earnings ESP Filter.

Earnings ESP: Zoetis has an Earnings ESP of -0.86% as the Zacks Consensus Estimate of $1.32 exceeds the Most Accurate Estimate of $1.31.

Zacks Rank: ZTS currently has a Zacks Rank #2.

Zoetis Inc. Price, Consensus and EPS Surprise

Zoetis Inc. Price, Consensus and EPS Surprise

Zoetis Inc. price-consensus-eps-surprise-chart | Zoetis Inc. Quote

Stocks to Consider

Here are some stocks in the same industry that have the right combination of elements to beat on earnings this time around:

Axsome Therapeutics (AXSM - Free Report) has an Earnings ESP of +1.49% and a Zacks Rank #2. You can see the complete list of today’s Zacks #1 Rank stocks here.

Axsome’s stock has increased 1.7% year to date. Axsome beat earnings estimates in three of the last four quarters while missing the mark on one occasion. AXSM has an earnings surprise of 22.34%, on average.

bluebird bio (BLUE - Free Report) has an Earnings ESP of +10.42% and a Zacks Rank #3.

bluebird’s stock has declined 43.2% year to date. bluebird beat earnings estimates in each of the last four quarters. BLUE has a four-quarter earnings surprise of 88.25%, on average.

Caribou Biosciences (CRBU - Free Report) has an Earnings ESP of +5.64% and a Zacks Rank #2.

Caribou’s stock has gained 5.9% in the year so far. Caribou beat earnings estimates in three of the last four reported quarters and missed once. CRBU has a negative earnings surprise of 1.36%, on average.

Stay on top of upcoming earnings announcements with the Zacks Earnings Calendar.

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