Walgreens Boots Alliance (NASDAQ:WBA) Sees Strong Trading Volume on Strong Earnings

Shares of Walgreens Boots Alliance, Inc. (NASDAQ:WBA) saw strong trading volume on Thursday following a stronger than expected earnings report. 6,251,158 shares changed hands during trading, a decline of 54% from the previous session’s volume of 13,495,633 shares.The stock last traded at $21.28 and had previously closed at $21.02.

The pharmacy operator reported $1.20 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.82 by $0.38. The business had revenue of $37.05 billion for 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%. The firm’s revenue was up 6.3% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $1.16 EPS.

Walgreens Boots Alliance Cuts Dividend

The company also recently announced 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. This represents a $1.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 4.61%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, February 16th. Walgreens Boots Alliance’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 151.52%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

WBA has been the subject of a number of research reports. Morgan Stanley lowered their target price on Walgreens Boots Alliance from $22.00 to $21.00 and set an “underweight” rating for the company in a report on Tuesday. HSBC restated a “reduce” rating and issued a $20.00 price objective (down previously from $27.00) on shares of Walgreens Boots Alliance in a report on Tuesday, February 20th. Barclays assumed coverage on Walgreens Boots Alliance in a report on Wednesday, January 3rd. They issued an “underweight” rating and a $21.00 price objective for the company. TheStreet upgraded Walgreens Boots Alliance from a “d+” rating to a “c-” rating in a report on Monday, January 8th. Finally, Raymond James restated a “market perform” rating on shares of Walgreens Boots Alliance in a report on Tuesday. Four analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, ten have given a hold rating and one has assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $25.00.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Walgreens Boots Alliance news, Director Valerie B. Jarrett purchased 4,456 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, January 29th. The stock was bought at an average cost of $22.44 per share, for a total transaction of $99,992.64. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now owns 4,456 shares in the company, valued at $99,992.64. The acquisition was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. In other Walgreens Boots Alliance news, Director Valerie B. Jarrett purchased 4,456 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, January 29th. The stock was bought at an average cost of $22.44 per share, for a total transaction of $99,992.64. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now owns 4,456 shares in the company, valued at $99,992.64. The acquisition was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, CEO Timothy C. Wentworth purchased 10,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, January 5th. The stock was acquired at an average price of $24.22 per share, with a total value of $242,200.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 585,122 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $14,171,654.84. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. Company insiders own 17.40% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC grew its stake in shares of Walgreens Boots Alliance by 308.4% during the third quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 1,119 shares of the pharmacy operator’s stock worth $25,000 after buying an additional 845 shares during the last quarter. Highlander Capital Management LLC bought a new stake in shares of Walgreens Boots Alliance during the fourth quarter worth $26,000. Pineridge Advisors LLC bought a new stake in shares of Walgreens Boots Alliance during the fourth quarter worth $26,000. Venturi Wealth Management LLC grew its stake in shares of Walgreens Boots Alliance by 1,241.8% during the fourth quarter. Venturi Wealth Management LLC now owns 1,060 shares of the pharmacy operator’s stock worth $28,000 after buying an additional 981 shares during the last quarter. Finally, FinTrust Capital Advisors LLC grew its stake in shares of Walgreens Boots Alliance by 2,314.5% during the third quarter. FinTrust Capital Advisors LLC now owns 1,328 shares of the pharmacy operator’s stock worth $30,000 after buying an additional 1,273 shares during the last quarter. 58.59% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Walgreens Boots Alliance Trading Up 3.2 %

The company has a quick ratio of 0.30, a current ratio of 0.66 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.27. The company has a market cap of $18.71 billion, a P/E ratio of 32.86, a PEG ratio of 1.27 and a beta of 0.73. The firm’s 50 day moving average is $21.72 and its two-hundred day moving average is $22.28.

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.