Walgreens Boots Alliance (NASDAQ:WBA) Shares Up 0.6%

Walgreens Boots Alliance, Inc. (NASDAQ:WBA) traded up 0.6% on Wednesday . The stock traded as high as $10.66 and last traded at $10.62. 1,260,383 shares changed hands during mid-day trading, a decline of 92% from the average session volume of 15,532,440 shares. The stock had previously closed at $10.56.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research analysts recently issued reports on WBA shares. Evercore ISI dropped their price objective on Walgreens Boots Alliance from $17.00 to $10.00 and set an “in-line” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, June 28th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. dropped their price objective on Walgreens Boots Alliance from $30.00 to $20.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, July 1st. TD Cowen dropped their price objective on Walgreens Boots Alliance from $35.00 to $22.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, July 1st. Morgan Stanley dropped their price objective on Walgreens Boots Alliance from $13.00 to $9.00 and set an “underweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, June 28th. Finally, Bank of America reissued an “underperform” rating and issued a $11.00 price objective (down previously from $22.00) on shares of Walgreens Boots Alliance in a research note on Friday, June 28th. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eleven have issued a hold rating and two have given a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $16.86.

Walgreens Boots Alliance Stock Performance

The firm has a fifty day moving average price of $12.76 and a 200 day moving average price of $17.14. 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 cap of $9.12 billion, a PE ratio of -1.58, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.75 and a beta of 0.72.

Walgreens Boots Alliance (NASDAQ:WBA) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, June 27th. The pharmacy operator reported $0.63 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 business had revenue of $36.40 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $35.94 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company posted $1.00 EPS. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 2.8% on a year-over-year basis. Research analysts forecast that Walgreens Boots Alliance, Inc. will post 2.87 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Walgreens Boots Alliance Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, September 12th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, August 21st will be issued a dividend of $0.25 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, August 21st. This represents a $1.00 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 9.46%. Walgreens Boots Alliance’s dividend payout ratio is presently -14.84%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Walgreens Boots Alliance

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Iron Horse Wealth Management LLC raised its stake in Walgreens Boots Alliance by 162.5% in the 2nd quarter. Iron Horse Wealth Management LLC now owns 2,100 shares of the pharmacy operator’s stock worth $25,000 after acquiring an additional 1,300 shares during the last quarter. Pineridge Advisors LLC purchased a new position in Walgreens Boots Alliance in the 4th quarter worth $26,000. Blue Trust Inc. raised its stake in Walgreens Boots Alliance by 87.0% in the 2nd quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 2,324 shares of the pharmacy operator’s stock worth $28,000 after acquiring an additional 1,081 shares during the last quarter. Quest Partners LLC purchased a new position in Walgreens Boots Alliance in the 4th quarter worth $30,000. Finally, Continuum Advisory LLC raised its stake in Walgreens Boots Alliance by 71.2% in the 2nd quarter. Continuum Advisory LLC now owns 2,453 shares of the pharmacy operator’s stock worth $30,000 after acquiring an additional 1,020 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 58.59% of the company’s stock.

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.