Cerity Partners LLC Increases Stake in Walgreens Boots Alliance, Inc. (NASDAQ:WBA)

Cerity Partners LLC boosted its position in Walgreens Boots Alliance, Inc. (NASDAQ:WBA) by 157.0% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 356,014 shares of the pharmacy operator’s stock after acquiring an additional 217,492 shares during the period. Cerity Partners LLC’s holdings in Walgreens Boots Alliance were worth $9,296,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Milestone Investment Advisors LLC purchased a new position in shares of Walgreens Boots Alliance in the first quarter valued at $31,000. Penserra Capital Management LLC purchased a new position in Walgreens Boots Alliance during the 4th quarter valued at about $34,000. Highlander Capital Management LLC bought a new stake in shares of Walgreens Boots Alliance during the fourth quarter valued at about $26,000. Venturi Wealth Management LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Walgreens Boots Alliance by 1,241.8% in 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 in the last quarter. Finally, EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Walgreens Boots Alliance by 308.4% in 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 in the last quarter. 58.59% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Activity at Walgreens Boots Alliance

In other news, Director Valerie B. Jarrett purchased 4,456 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Monday, January 29th. The shares were acquired at an average price of $22.44 per share, with a total value of $99,992.64. Following the acquisition, the director now directly owns 4,456 shares in the company, valued at $99,992.64. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. In other Walgreens Boots Alliance news, Director Valerie B. Jarrett acquired 4,456 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Monday, January 29th. The stock was acquired at an average price of $22.44 per share, for a total transaction of $99,992.64. Following the acquisition, the director now owns 4,456 shares in the company, valued at approximately $99,992.64. The acquisition was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, Director Nancy M. Schlichting sold 15,209 shares of Walgreens Boots Alliance stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, January 16th. The stock was 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. 17.40% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Walgreens Boots Alliance Stock Performance

NASDAQ WBA opened at $17.85 on Monday. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $20.90 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $22.07. Walgreens Boots Alliance, Inc. has a 12-month low of $17.70 and a 12-month high of $36.14. The firm has a market cap of $15.40 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -2.55, a PEG ratio of 1.10 and a beta of 0.73. The company has a quick ratio of 0.32, a current ratio of 0.66 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.50.

Walgreens Boots Alliance (NASDAQ:WBA) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, March 28th. The pharmacy operator reported $1.20 earnings per share (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 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 period last year, the company earned $1.16 EPS. On average, equities analysts forecast that Walgreens Boots Alliance, Inc. will post 3.23 EPS for the current year.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of analysts recently weighed in on the stock. HSBC reaffirmed a “reduce” rating and set a $20.00 target price (down previously from $27.00) on shares of Walgreens Boots Alliance in a report on Tuesday, February 20th. SVB Leerink lowered their price objective on Walgreens Boots Alliance from $23.00 to $22.00 and set a “market perform” rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, March 18th. TheStreet upgraded Walgreens Boots Alliance from a “d+” rating to a “c-” rating in a research report on Monday, January 8th. Truist Financial restated a “hold” rating and issued a $25.00 target price on shares of Walgreens Boots Alliance in a research note on Monday, April 1st. Finally, Barclays assumed coverage on Walgreens Boots Alliance in a research report on Wednesday, January 3rd. They set an “underweight” rating and a $21.00 price target for the company. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, ten have assigned a hold rating and two have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $24.36.

Walgreens Boots Alliance Company Profile

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.