Walgreens Boots Alliance (NASDAQ:WBA) Trading Up 14% After Strong Earnings

Walgreens Boots Alliance, Inc. (NASDAQ:WBA) shot up 14% during trading on Tuesday following a stronger than expected earnings report. The company traded as high as $10.38 and last traded at $10.26. 39,514,496 shares were traded during trading, an increase of 137% from the average session volume of 16,644,746 shares. The stock had previously closed at $9.00.

The pharmacy operator reported $0.39 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.36 by $0.03. Walgreens Boots Alliance had a positive return on equity of 12.63% and a negative net margin of 3.99%. The company had revenue of $37.50 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $35.75 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $0.67 earnings per share. Walgreens Boots Alliance’s revenue was up 5.9% compared to the same quarter last year.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several brokerages recently issued reports on WBA. Royal Bank of Canada dropped their price objective on Walgreens Boots Alliance from $22.00 to $13.00 and set a “sector perform” rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, July 2nd. Morgan Stanley lowered their target price on Walgreens Boots Alliance from $9.00 to $7.00 and set an “underweight” rating for the company in a report on Friday, October 11th. Bank of America lowered their target price on Walgreens Boots Alliance from $11.00 to $7.50 and set an “underperform” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, September 4th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lowered their target price on Walgreens Boots Alliance from $20.00 to $15.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Friday, August 30th. Finally, Barclays upped their target price on Walgreens Boots Alliance from $7.00 to $8.00 and gave the stock an “underweight” rating in a report on Wednesday. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have given a hold rating and two have issued a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $13.38.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Walgreens Boots Alliance

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in WBA. 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. Blue Trust Inc. grew its position in Walgreens Boots Alliance by 87.0% during the 2nd quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 2,324 shares of the pharmacy operator’s stock worth $28,000 after purchasing an additional 1,081 shares during the period. Continuum Advisory LLC grew its position in Walgreens Boots Alliance by 71.2% during the 2nd quarter. Continuum Advisory LLC now owns 2,453 shares of the pharmacy operator’s stock worth $30,000 after purchasing an additional 1,020 shares during the period. Strategic Investment Solutions Inc. IL acquired a new stake in Walgreens Boots Alliance during the 2nd quarter worth about $34,000. Finally, New Covenant Trust Company N.A. acquired a new stake in Walgreens Boots Alliance during the 1st quarter worth about $35,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 58.59% of the company’s stock.

Walgreens Boots Alliance Price Performance

The firm has a 50-day simple moving average of $9.41 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $13.22. The company has a market capitalization of $9.20 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -1.56, a P/E/G ratio of 1.06 and a beta of 0.70. The company has a current ratio of 0.65, a quick ratio of 0.31 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.49.

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.