Walgreens Boots Alliance, Inc. (NASDAQ:WBA) Receives Average Recommendation of “Reduce” from Analysts

Walgreens Boots Alliance, Inc. (NASDAQ:WBA) has been given a consensus rating of “Reduce” by the sixteen brokerages that are currently covering the firm, MarketBeat reports. Four analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, ten have issued a hold rating and two have assigned a buy rating to the company. The average twelve-month price objective among brokers that have covered the stock in the last year is $17.71.

Several equities analysts have recently issued reports on the company. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft cut their price target on Walgreens Boots Alliance from $23.00 to $22.00 and set a “hold” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, April 3rd. Bank of America restated an “underperform” rating and set a $11.00 target price (down previously from $22.00) on shares of Walgreens Boots Alliance in a report on Friday, June 28th. Evercore ISI reduced their target price on Walgreens Boots Alliance from $17.00 to $10.00 and set an “in-line” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, June 28th. Barclays reduced their target price on Walgreens Boots Alliance from $21.00 to $19.00 and set an “underweight” rating on the stock in a report on Monday, June 24th. Finally, UBS Group reduced their target price on Walgreens Boots Alliance from $17.00 to $12.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, July 3rd.

Walgreens Boots Alliance Price Performance

Shares of WBA stock opened at $10.79 on Friday. The stock’s fifty day moving average is $15.56 and its 200-day moving average is $19.43. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.49, a quick ratio of 0.31 and a current ratio of 0.65. The stock has a market capitalization of $9.31 billion, a PE ratio of -1.60, a PEG ratio of 0.78 and a beta of 0.72. Walgreens Boots Alliance has a 52 week low of $10.69 and a 52 week high of $31.32.

Walgreens Boots Alliance (NASDAQ:WBA) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, June 27th. The pharmacy operator reported $0.63 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.68 by ($0.05). Walgreens Boots Alliance had a negative net margin of 3.99% and a positive return on equity of 12.63%. The firm had revenue of $36.40 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $35.94 billion. During the same period last year, the company earned $1.00 EPS. The company’s revenue was up 2.8% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities research analysts expect that Walgreens Boots Alliance will post 2.87 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Walgreens Boots Alliance Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, June 12th. Investors of record on Tuesday, May 21st were given a $0.25 dividend. This represents a $1.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 9.27%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, May 20th. Walgreens Boots Alliance’s dividend payout ratio is presently -14.84%.

Insider Activity at Walgreens Boots Alliance

In other news, Director Inderpal S. Bhandari bought 3,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, April 11th. The shares were acquired at an average price of $18.05 per share, with a total value of $54,150.00. Following the transaction, the director now owns 3,000 shares in the company, valued at $54,150. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. 17.40% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in WBA. Highlander Capital Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of Walgreens Boots Alliance during the 4th quarter worth approximately $26,000. Pineridge Advisors LLC acquired a new position in shares of Walgreens Boots Alliance during the 4th quarter worth approximately $26,000. Venturi Wealth Management LLC increased its position in shares of Walgreens Boots Alliance by 1,241.8% during the 4th quarter. Venturi Wealth Management LLC now owns 1,060 shares of the pharmacy operator’s stock worth $28,000 after purchasing an additional 981 shares during the last quarter. Rocky Mountain Advisers LLC acquired a new position in shares of Walgreens Boots Alliance during the 4th quarter worth approximately $30,000. Finally, Quest Partners LLC acquired a new position in shares of Walgreens Boots Alliance during the 4th quarter worth approximately $30,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds 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.