Walgreens Boots Alliance (NASDAQ:WBA) Releases Quarterly Earnings Results, Beats Expectations By $0.38 EPS

Walgreens Boots Alliance (NASDAQ:WBA) released its earnings results on Thursday. The pharmacy operator reported $1.20 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.82 by $0.38, Briefing.com reports. The company had revenue of $37.05 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $35.86 billion. Walgreens Boots Alliance had a return on equity of 10.48% and a net margin of 0.40%. Walgreens Boots Alliance’s quarterly revenue was up 6.3% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $1.16 earnings per share. Walgreens Boots Alliance updated its FY24 guidance to $3.20-3.35 EPS.

Walgreens Boots Alliance Price Performance

NASDAQ WBA opened at $21.02 on Thursday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.27, a quick ratio of 0.30 and a current ratio of 0.66. The stock has a market capitalization of $18.13 billion, a PE ratio of 31.85, a P/E/G ratio of 1.27 and a beta of 0.73. The stock has a 50-day simple moving average of $21.75 and a 200 day simple moving average of $22.29. Walgreens Boots Alliance has a twelve month low of $19.68 and a twelve month high of $36.58.

Walgreens Boots Alliance Cuts Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, March 12th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, February 20th were issued a dividend of $0.25 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, February 16th. This represents a $1.00 annualized dividend and a yield of 4.76%. Walgreens Boots Alliance’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 151.52%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research analysts recently weighed in on the stock. SVB Leerink cut their target price on shares of Walgreens Boots Alliance from $23.00 to $22.00 and set a “market perform” rating for the company in a research note on Monday, March 18th. Barclays initiated coverage on Walgreens Boots Alliance in a report on Wednesday, January 3rd. They issued an “underweight” rating and a $21.00 price objective on the stock. TheStreet raised shares of Walgreens Boots Alliance from a “d+” rating to a “c-” rating in a research report on Monday, January 8th. Morgan Stanley decreased their price objective on shares of Walgreens Boots Alliance from $22.00 to $21.00 and set an “underweight” rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday. Finally, HSBC restated a “reduce” rating and set a $20.00 price objective (down previously from $27.00) on shares of Walgreens Boots Alliance in a research note on Tuesday, February 20th. Four analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, ten have issued a hold rating and one has issued a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $25.00.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Walgreens Boots Alliance news, Director Valerie B. Jarrett bought 4,456 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, January 29th. The shares were acquired at an average cost of $22.44 per share, for a total transaction of $99,992.64. Following the transaction, the director now owns 4,456 shares in the company, valued at $99,992.64. The acquisition was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. In other news, Director Valerie B. Jarrett bought 4,456 shares of Walgreens Boots Alliance stock in a transaction dated Monday, January 29th. The shares were bought at an average price of $22.44 per share, for a total transaction of $99,992.64. Following the purchase, the director now owns 4,456 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $99,992.64. The purchase was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Also, Director Nancy M. Schlichting sold 15,209 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, January 16th. The stock was sold at an average price of $23.05, for a total transaction of $350,567.45. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 17.40% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Walgreens Boots Alliance

A number of hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in WBA. Candriam Luxembourg S.C.A. raised its holdings in Walgreens Boots Alliance by 0.5% during the 1st quarter. Candriam Luxembourg S.C.A. now owns 63,483 shares of the pharmacy operator’s stock worth $2,842,000 after purchasing an additional 310 shares during the last quarter. Signet Financial Management LLC boosted its position in shares of Walgreens Boots Alliance by 1.0% during the first quarter. Signet Financial Management LLC now owns 35,461 shares of the pharmacy operator’s stock worth $1,588,000 after purchasing an additional 334 shares in the last quarter. Laurel Wealth Advisors Inc. grew its holdings in shares of Walgreens Boots Alliance by 5.1% in the 1st quarter. Laurel Wealth Advisors Inc. now owns 10,563 shares of the pharmacy operator’s stock valued at $473,000 after buying an additional 509 shares during the period. Benjamin F. Edwards & Company Inc. raised its stake in Walgreens Boots Alliance by 1.8% during the 2nd quarter. Benjamin F. Edwards & Company Inc. now owns 28,449 shares of the pharmacy operator’s stock worth $811,000 after buying an additional 516 shares during the period. Finally, Equitable Holdings Inc. grew its stake in Walgreens Boots Alliance by 3.5% in the second quarter. Equitable Holdings Inc. now owns 17,252 shares of the pharmacy operator’s stock valued at $492,000 after acquiring an additional 582 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 58.59% of the company’s stock.

About Walgreens Boots Alliance

Walgreens Boots Alliance, Inc operates as a healthcare, pharmacy, and retail company in the United States, the United Kingdom, Germany, and internationally. It operates through three segments: U.S. Retail Pharmacy, International, and U.S. Healthcare. The U.S. Retail Pharmacy segment engages in operation of the retail drugstores, health and wellness services, specialty, and home delivery pharmacy services, which offers health and wellness, beauty, personal care and consumables, and general merchandise.