Quantbot Technologies LP Sells 358,989 Shares of Walgreens Boots Alliance, Inc. $WBA

Key Points

• Quantbot Technologies LP reduced its stake in Walgreens Boots Alliance by 69.9%, selling 358,989 shares during the first quarter, leaving them with 154,404 shares worth $1,725,000.
• Walgreens Boots Alliance reported earnings of $0.38 per share, exceeding analysts' expectations of $0.34, and had a 7.2% year-over-year increase in revenue.
• Brokerages have issued various ratings on Walgreens Boots Alliance, with a consensus rating of "Reduce" and a price target of $10.59.

Quantbot Technologies LP cut its holdings in shares of Walgreens Boots Alliance, Inc. (NASDAQ:WBA - Free Report) by 69.9% during the 1st quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 154,404 shares of the pharmacy operator's stock after selling 358,989 shares during the quarter. Quantbot Technologies LP's holdings in Walgreens Boots Alliance were worth $1,725,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in WBA. Mariner LLC increased its holdings in shares of Walgreens Boots Alliance by 21.4% during the fourth quarter. Mariner LLC now owns 149,240 shares of the pharmacy operator's stock worth $1,392,000 after purchasing an additional 26,325 shares during the period. Marshall Wace LLP bought a new position in shares of Walgreens Boots Alliance during the fourth quarter worth approximately $198,000. Forum Financial Management LP increased its holdings in shares of Walgreens Boots Alliance by 71.2% during the fourth quarter. Forum Financial Management LP now owns 19,725 shares of the pharmacy operator's stock worth $184,000 after purchasing an additional 8,206 shares during the period. First Trust Advisors LP bought a new position in Walgreens Boots Alliance in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $368,000. Finally, Dimensional Fund Advisors LP increased its stake in Walgreens Boots Alliance by 17.6% in the fourth quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 1,823,924 shares of the pharmacy operator's stock valued at $17,016,000 after acquiring an additional 272,895 shares during the last quarter. 58.59% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Walgreens Boots Alliance Stock Performance

NASDAQ WBA opened at $12.19 on Friday. The firm's fifty day moving average price is $11.62 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $11.16. The stock has a market cap of $10.55 billion, a PE ratio of -1.67, a PEG ratio of 1.43 and a beta of 0.80. 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 debt-to-equity ratio of 0.96, a quick ratio of 0.32 and a current ratio of 0.60.

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 for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $0.34 by $0.04. The firm had revenue of $38.99 billion for 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%. The company's revenue was up 7.2% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $0.63 earnings per share. On average, equities analysts expect that Walgreens Boots Alliance, Inc. will post 1.6 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of brokerages recently issued reports on WBA. Wall Street Zen began coverage on shares of Walgreens Boots Alliance in a research note on Wednesday, May 21st. They issued a "hold" rating on the stock. UBS Group reissued a "neutral" rating on shares of Walgreens Boots Alliance in a research note on Thursday, June 26th. Finally, Morgan Stanley reissued an "underweight" rating on shares of Walgreens Boots Alliance in a research note on Thursday, June 26th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, six have issued a Hold rating and four have given a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of "Reduce" and a consensus price target of $10.59.

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.

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