Bank of America Lowers Walgreens Boots Alliance (NASDAQ:WBA) Price Target to $22.00

Walgreens Boots Alliance (NASDAQ:WBA) had its price target reduced by Bank of America from $23.00 to $22.00 in a research note released on Tuesday, Benzinga reports. Bank of America currently has an underperform rating on the pharmacy operator’s stock.

A number of other equities analysts also recently issued reports on the company. Barclays started coverage on Walgreens Boots Alliance in a research note on Wednesday, January 3rd. They issued an underweight rating and a $21.00 price target on the stock. Morgan Stanley cut their target price on shares of Walgreens Boots Alliance from $22.00 to $21.00 and set an underweight rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday. HSBC reiterated a reduce rating and set a $20.00 price target (down previously from $27.00) on shares of Walgreens Boots Alliance in a research note on Tuesday, February 20th. SVB Leerink reduced their price objective on Walgreens Boots Alliance from $23.00 to $22.00 and set a market perform rating for the company in a research note on Monday, March 18th. Finally, Leerink Partnrs reissued a market perform rating on shares of Walgreens Boots Alliance in a report on Monday, February 26th. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have issued a hold rating and one has assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of Hold and an average target price of $25.00.

Walgreens Boots Alliance Price Performance

WBA stock opened at $21.69 on Tuesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.27, a quick ratio of 0.30 and a current ratio of 0.66. The firm has a market capitalization of $18.71 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 32.86, a PEG ratio of 1.30 and a beta of 0.73. The firm has a 50 day moving average price of $21.71 and a 200-day moving average price of $22.27. Walgreens Boots Alliance has a 52-week low of $19.68 and a 52-week high of $36.58.

Walgreens Boots Alliance (NASDAQ:WBA) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, March 28th. The pharmacy operator reported $1.20 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.82 by $0.38. Walgreens Boots Alliance had a net margin of 0.40% and a return on equity of 10.48%. The firm had revenue of $37.05 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $35.86 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company posted $1.16 earnings per share. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 6.3% on a year-over-year basis. Equities research analysts forecast that Walgreens Boots Alliance will post 3.23 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Walgreens Boots Alliance Cuts Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, March 12th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, February 20th were issued a $0.25 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Friday, February 16th. This represents a $1.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 4.61%. Walgreens Boots Alliance’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 151.52%.

Insider Activity at Walgreens Boots Alliance

In related news, CEO Timothy C. Wentworth purchased 10,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, January 5th. The shares were bought at an average price of $24.22 per share, for a total transaction of $242,200.00. Following the acquisition, the chief executive officer now owns 585,122 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $14,171,654.84. The acquisition was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. In related news, Director Valerie B. Jarrett bought 4,456 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Monday, January 29th. The stock was purchased 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 of the company’s stock, valued at $99,992.64. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, CEO Timothy C. Wentworth purchased 10,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, January 5th. The stock was bought at an average price of $24.22 per share, for a total transaction of $242,200.00. Following the completion of the acquisition, 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. 17.40% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Walgreens Boots Alliance

Hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Milestone Investment Advisors LLC bought a new position in Walgreens Boots Alliance in the first quarter worth approximately $31,000. Penserra Capital Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Walgreens Boots Alliance during the fourth quarter valued at $34,000. Highlander Capital Management LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Walgreens Boots Alliance during the fourth quarter worth about $26,000. Pineridge Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in Walgreens Boots Alliance during the fourth quarter worth about $26,000. Finally, Venturi Wealth Management LLC raised its holdings in Walgreens Boots Alliance by 1,241.8% in 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 period. 58.59% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

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.