Zoetis analyst day 'modestly underperformed' - Goldman Sachs

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Analysts at BofA and Goldman Sachs differed in their views following Zoetis' (NYSE:ZTS) analyst day, which was held on Thursday.

Goldman Sachs, which maintained a Buy rating on the stock, said in a research note reacting to the event that ZTS "modestly underperformed."

"While its new long-term outlook was largely consistent with expectations, it incorporated a wider revenue range than expected (MSD-HSD vs. GS expecting ~HSD) and lacked specifics on other P&L items (e.g. margins, NI growth)," the investment bank stated.

However, they noted that while the lack of updates on market trends and uncertainty on competitive launches are likely to remain an overhang near-term, "the insight into the pipeline should help build confidence in the growth outlook."

Meanwhile, BofA analysts said the company gave sufficient insight, despite its reluctance to get too specific.

"We believe mgmt was reluctant to get too specific in their financial outlook in order to preserve some financial flexibility in coming years, particularly as competition enters the market in several key product areas," said the analysts, who maintained a Buy rating and $200 price target on the stock.

"Overall, we think mgmt. addressed the key questions on the stock and gave sufficient insight into what 'future Zoetis' looks like, even if more specific details will only become clear over time."