GABELLI & Co INVESTMENT ADVISERS INC. Makes New $2.18 Million Investment in Walgreens Boots Alliance, Inc. $WBA

Key Points

• GABELLI & Co INVESTMENT ADVISERS INC. purchased 194,950 shares of Walgreens Boots Alliance, valued at approximately $2,178,000, indicating institutional interest in the company.
• Walgreens reported $0.38 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, surpassing analysts' expectations, with a revenue rise of 7.2% compared to the previous year.
• The stock currently holds a consensus rating of "Reduce" from analysts, with an average target price of $10.59 amidst varying ratings from different brokerages.

GABELLI & Co INVESTMENT ADVISERS INC. bought a new position in Walgreens Boots Alliance, Inc. (NASDAQ:WBA - Free Report) in the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The firm bought 194,950 shares of the pharmacy operator's stock, valued at approximately $2,178,000.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of the company. First Trust Advisors LP bought a new position in shares of Walgreens Boots Alliance in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $368,000. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. increased its holdings in Walgreens Boots Alliance by 6.0% during the 1st quarter. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. now owns 87,428 shares of the pharmacy operator's stock worth $978,000 after acquiring an additional 4,926 shares during the period. Concurrent Investment Advisors LLC lifted its stake in Walgreens Boots Alliance by 28.2% in the 1st quarter. Concurrent Investment Advisors LLC now owns 13,924 shares of the pharmacy operator's stock worth $156,000 after purchasing an additional 3,064 shares in the last quarter. Teacher Retirement System of Texas bought a new position in Walgreens Boots Alliance in the 1st quarter valued at $1,199,000. Finally, Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC grew its position in shares of Walgreens Boots Alliance by 3.3% during the 1st quarter. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC now owns 42,332 shares of the pharmacy operator's stock valued at $472,000 after purchasing an additional 1,341 shares in the last quarter. 58.59% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Walgreens Boots Alliance Price Performance

WBA remained flat at $11.98 during trading on Friday. The business has a 50 day moving average of $11.69 and a 200-day moving average of $11.26. Walgreens Boots Alliance, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $8.08 and a fifty-two week high of $13.25. The company has a quick ratio of 0.32, a current ratio of 0.60 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.96. The stock has a market capitalization of $10.37 billion, a P/E ratio of -1.64, a P/E/G ratio of 1.42 and a beta of 0.80.

Walgreens Boots Alliance (NASDAQ:WBA - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, June 26th. The pharmacy operator reported $0.38 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $0.34 by $0.04. The firm had revenue of $38.99 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $36.72 billion. Walgreens Boots Alliance had a positive return on equity of 17.66% and a negative net margin of 4.07%.The company's revenue for the quarter was up 7.2% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the business earned $0.63 EPS. As a group, analysts forecast that Walgreens Boots Alliance, Inc. will post 1.6 EPS for the current year.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of brokerages recently issued reports on WBA. UBS Group reiterated a "neutral" rating on shares of Walgreens Boots Alliance in a research report on Thursday, June 26th. Morgan Stanley restated an "underweight" rating on shares of Walgreens Boots Alliance in a research note on Thursday, June 26th. Finally, Wall Street Zen began coverage on Walgreens Boots Alliance in a report on Wednesday, May 21st. They issued a "hold" rating on the stock. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Buy rating, six have issued a Hold rating and four have issued a Sell rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Walgreens Boots Alliance has a consensus rating of "Reduce" and an average target price of $10.15.

Walgreens Boots Alliance 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.