By Michael Calia 

Zoetis Inc., the animal-health products maker at the center of the latest round of pharmaceutical deal talk, said Tuesday that its board has approved a $500 million share-buyback program.

The company's shares, which have risen 19% so far this month, were inactive at $44.23 premarket.

The announcement comes a day after the company disclosed a deal to buy Abbott Laboratories's animal-health business for $255 million and about a week after the disclosure that activist investor William Ackman had taken a stake of about $2 billion in Zoetis.

Last week, Zoetis adopted a so-called poison pill plan, which is used to ward off potential takeovers, although the company didn't mention Mr. Ackman's Pershing Square Capital Management LP.

The Wall Street Journal had reported that Mr. Ackman might push the company to sell itself to a larger company, such as Valeant Pharmaceuticals International Inc. The report also said Mr. Ackman was working with Sachem Head Capital Management LP, another activist firm.

Zoetis--a Pfizer Inc. spinoff which makes vaccines and medicine for household pets and livestock--generated $4.6 billion in sales last year, making it the biggest player in the animal-health industry.

The deal with Abbott would expand Zoetis's diagnostics business as more people are having their pets treated for diseases such as diabetes and cancer.

Write to Michael Calia at michael.calia@wsj.com

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