Ethic Inc. Sells 31,742 Shares of Walgreens Boots Alliance, Inc. $WBA

Key Points

• Ethic Inc. reduced its holdings in Walgreens Boots Alliance by 38.3%, selling 31,742 shares and now owning 51,224 shares worth approximately $572,000.
• Other institutional investors, such as First Trust Advisors LP and Mirae Asset Global Investments, are actively adjusting their stakes, with new investments valued at over $1 million collectively in the first quarter.
• Walgreens Boots Alliance reported a quarterly EPS of $0.38, exceeding expectations, with revenues of $38.99 billion, marking a 7.2% increase from the previous year.

Ethic Inc. lowered its holdings in Walgreens Boots Alliance, Inc. (NASDAQ:WBA - Free Report) by 38.3% in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 51,224 shares of the pharmacy operator's stock after selling 31,742 shares during the period. Ethic Inc.'s holdings in Walgreens Boots Alliance were worth $572,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Other hedge funds have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. First Trust Advisors LP bought a new position in Walgreens Boots Alliance in the fourth quarter valued at $368,000. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. grew its position in Walgreens Boots Alliance by 6.0% in the first quarter. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. now owns 87,428 shares of the pharmacy operator's stock valued at $978,000 after purchasing an additional 4,926 shares in the last quarter. Concurrent Investment Advisors LLC grew its position in Walgreens Boots Alliance by 28.2% in the first quarter. Concurrent Investment Advisors LLC now owns 13,924 shares of the pharmacy operator's stock valued at $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 first quarter valued at $1,199,000. Finally, Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC grew its position in Walgreens Boots Alliance by 3.3% in the first 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. Institutional investors own 58.59% of the company's stock.

Walgreens Boots Alliance Stock Performance

NASDAQ WBA opened at $12.20 on Thursday. The firm has a 50-day moving average of $11.60 and a 200-day moving average of $11.14. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.96, a quick ratio of 0.32 and a current ratio of 0.60. The stock has a market cap of $10.56 billion, a PE ratio of -1.67, a P/E/G ratio of 1.42 and a beta of 0.80. Walgreens Boots Alliance, Inc. has a 52-week low of $8.08 and a 52-week high of $13.25.

Walgreens Boots Alliance (NASDAQ:WBA - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results 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 company had revenue of $38.99 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $36.72 billion. Walgreens Boots Alliance had a negative net margin of 4.07% and a positive return on equity of 17.66%. Walgreens Boots Alliance's quarterly revenue was up 7.2% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the company posted $0.63 EPS. On average, sell-side analysts anticipate that Walgreens Boots Alliance, Inc. will post 1.6 EPS for the current year.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research analysts recently weighed in on WBA shares. UBS Group reaffirmed a "neutral" rating on shares of Walgreens Boots Alliance in a research report on Thursday, June 26th. Morgan Stanley reiterated an "underweight" rating on shares of Walgreens Boots Alliance in a research note on Thursday, June 26th. Finally, Wall Street Zen started coverage on shares of Walgreens Boots Alliance in a research note on Wednesday, May 21st. They issued a "hold" rating for the company. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, six have issued a Hold rating and four have issued a Sell rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Walgreens Boots Alliance has a consensus rating of "Reduce" and an average target price of $10.59.

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.

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