Walgreens Boots Alliance (NASDAQ:WBA) Releases FY24 Earnings Guidance

Walgreens Boots Alliance (NASDAQ:WBA) updated its FY24 earnings guidance on Thursday. The company provided earnings per share (EPS) guidance of $3.20-3.35 for the period, compared to the consensus estimate of $3.24.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities analysts recently issued reports on the company. HSBC reaffirmed a reduce rating and set a $20.00 price objective (down from $27.00) on shares of Walgreens Boots Alliance in a report on Tuesday, February 20th. Barclays began coverage on Walgreens Boots Alliance in a research note on Wednesday, January 3rd. They issued an underweight rating and a $21.00 target price for the company. TheStreet upgraded Walgreens Boots Alliance from a d+ rating to a c- rating in a research note on Monday, January 8th. Leerink Partnrs reissued a market perform rating on shares of Walgreens Boots Alliance in a research report on Monday, February 26th. Finally, SVB Leerink lowered their price target on Walgreens Boots Alliance from $23.00 to $22.00 and set a market perform rating for the company in a research report on Monday, March 18th. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, ten have issued a hold rating and one has given a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Walgreens Boots Alliance has a consensus rating of Hold and a consensus price target of $25.00.

Walgreens Boots Alliance Trading Up 2.5 %

Shares of NASDAQ WBA opened at $21.02 on Thursday. The stock’s 50 day moving average price is $21.75 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $22.29. Walgreens Boots Alliance has a 52-week low of $19.68 and a 52-week high of $36.58. The stock has a market capitalization of $18.13 billion, a P/E ratio of 31.85, a PEG ratio of 1.27 and a beta of 0.73. The company has a quick ratio of 0.30, a current ratio of 0.66 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.27.

Walgreens Boots Alliance (NASDAQ:WBA) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, January 4th. The pharmacy operator reported $0.66 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.62 by $0.04. Walgreens Boots Alliance had a return on equity of 10.48% and a net margin of 0.40%. The firm had revenue of $36.70 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $34.95 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $1.16 earnings per share. Walgreens Boots Alliance’s revenue for the quarter was up 9.9% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, analysts anticipate that Walgreens Boots Alliance will post 3.23 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Walgreens Boots Alliance Cuts Dividend

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

Insider Transactions at Walgreens Boots Alliance

In other news, Director Nancy M. Schlichting sold 15,209 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, January 16th. The stock was sold at an average price of $23.05, for a total transaction of $350,567.45. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. In other news, CEO Timothy C. Wentworth purchased 10,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Friday, January 5th. The stock was purchased at an average cost of $24.22 per share, with a total value of $242,200.00. Following the purchase, the chief executive officer now owns 585,122 shares in the company, valued at approximately $14,171,654.84. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, Director Nancy M. Schlichting sold 15,209 shares of the stock in a transaction on Tuesday, January 16th. The shares were sold at an average price of $23.05, for a total value of $350,567.45. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders own 17.40% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Walgreens Boots Alliance

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Milestone Investment Advisors LLC bought a new position in Walgreens Boots Alliance during the 1st quarter valued at $31,000. Penserra Capital Management LLC bought a new stake in shares of Walgreens Boots Alliance during the 4th quarter worth $34,000. Groupama Asset Managment bought a new stake in shares of Walgreens Boots Alliance during the 4th quarter worth $42,000. Financial Freedom LLC bought a new stake in shares of Walgreens Boots Alliance during the 4th quarter worth $46,000. Finally, Compass Wealth Management LLC bought a new stake in shares of Walgreens Boots Alliance during the 4th quarter worth $47,000. 58.59% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

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.