UBS Group Lowers Walgreens Boots Alliance (NASDAQ:WBA) Price Target to $22.00

Walgreens Boots Alliance (NASDAQ:WBA) had its target price cut by research analysts at UBS Group from $25.00 to $22.00 in a report released on Wednesday, Benzinga reports. The firm presently has a “neutral” rating on the pharmacy operator’s stock. UBS Group’s target price points to a potential upside of 15.91% from the stock’s current price.

Several other analysts have also weighed in on WBA. HSBC reissued a “reduce” rating and issued a $20.00 target price (down previously from $27.00) on shares of Walgreens Boots Alliance in a research note on Tuesday, February 20th. Morgan Stanley dropped their target price on Walgreens Boots Alliance from $21.00 to $20.00 and set an “underweight” rating for the company in a report on Monday. SVB Leerink decreased their price target on Walgreens Boots Alliance from $23.00 to $22.00 and set a “market perform” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, March 18th. Bank of America cut their price objective on Walgreens Boots Alliance from $23.00 to $22.00 and set an “underperform” rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, March 26th. Finally, Barclays initiated coverage on shares of Walgreens Boots Alliance in a research report on Wednesday, January 3rd. They issued an “underweight” rating and a $21.00 price target on the stock. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, ten have issued a hold rating and two have given a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $24.36.

Walgreens Boots Alliance Stock Up 2.6 %

NASDAQ WBA opened at $18.98 on Wednesday. Walgreens Boots Alliance has a twelve month low of $18.49 and a twelve month high of $36.58. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.50, a quick ratio of 0.32 and a current ratio of 0.66. The stock has a market cap of $16.37 billion, a PE ratio of -2.64, a PEG ratio of 1.16 and a beta of 0.73. The firm has a 50-day simple moving average of $21.49 and a 200 day simple moving average of $22.21.

Walgreens Boots Alliance (NASDAQ:WBA) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, March 28th. The pharmacy operator reported $1.20 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.82 by $0.38. The company had revenue of $37.05 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $35.86 billion. Walgreens Boots Alliance had a positive return on equity of 12.11% and a negative net margin of 4.18%. Walgreens Boots Alliance’s revenue for the quarter was up 6.3% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $1.16 EPS. On average, research analysts forecast that Walgreens Boots Alliance will post 3.23 EPS for the current year.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Walgreens Boots Alliance news, Director Valerie B. Jarrett bought 4,456 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Monday, January 29th. The shares were bought 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 approximately $99,992.64. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. In other Walgreens Boots Alliance news, Director Nancy M. Schlichting sold 15,209 shares of the firm’s 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 sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Also, Director Valerie B. Jarrett purchased 4,456 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Monday, January 29th. The stock was bought at an average cost of $22.44 per share, with a total value of $99,992.64. Following the completion of the purchase, the director now owns 4,456 shares in the company, valued at $99,992.64. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. Corporate insiders own 17.40% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Walgreens Boots Alliance

Several large investors have recently bought and sold shares of WBA. Candriam Luxembourg S.C.A. increased its position in shares of Walgreens Boots Alliance by 0.5% in the 1st quarter. Candriam Luxembourg S.C.A. now owns 63,483 shares of the pharmacy operator’s stock valued at $2,842,000 after buying an additional 310 shares in the last quarter. Signet Financial Management LLC raised 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 during the period. Syntax Advisors LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Walgreens Boots Alliance by 1.7% during the 2nd quarter. Syntax Advisors LLC now owns 20,759 shares of the pharmacy operator’s stock valued at $591,000 after purchasing an additional 344 shares in the last quarter. Cooper Financial Group grew its position in shares of Walgreens Boots Alliance by 4.2% in the 3rd quarter. Cooper Financial Group now owns 10,982 shares of the pharmacy operator’s stock valued at $244,000 after purchasing an additional 442 shares during the period. Finally, New York Life Investment Management LLC increased its stake in Walgreens Boots Alliance by 0.4% during the 3rd quarter. New York Life Investment Management LLC now owns 114,506 shares of the pharmacy operator’s stock worth $2,547,000 after purchasing an additional 499 shares in the last quarter. 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.