Walgreens Boots Alliance, Inc. (NASDAQ:WBA) Shares Sold by LPL Financial LLC

Key Points

• LPL Financial LLC reduced its holdings in Walgreens Boots Alliance by 30.8% in the first quarter, owning approximately 616,619 shares valued at around $6.89 million after the sale.
• Walgreens Boots Alliance reported a quarterly EPS of $0.38, surpassing the consensus estimate of $0.34, while its revenue reached $38.99 billion, exceeding expectations of $36.72 billion.
• The stock has been rated with an average target price of $10.59, with four analysts giving it a sell rating, seven a hold rating, and two a buy rating.

LPL Financial LLC decreased its holdings in Walgreens Boots Alliance, Inc. (NASDAQ:WBA - Free Report) by 30.8% in the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 616,619 shares of the pharmacy operator's stock after selling 274,997 shares during the period. LPL Financial LLC owned about 0.07% of Walgreens Boots Alliance worth $6,888,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Several other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of the business. Northern Trust Corp grew its holdings in Walgreens Boots Alliance by 18.8% during the 4th quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 8,896,742 shares of the pharmacy operator's stock worth $83,007,000 after acquiring an additional 1,407,973 shares in the last quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC grew its stake in shares of Walgreens Boots Alliance by 5.0% during the fourth quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC now owns 7,972,514 shares of the pharmacy operator's stock worth $74,384,000 after purchasing an additional 378,039 shares in the last quarter. Two Sigma Advisers LP grew its stake in shares of Walgreens Boots Alliance by 186.3% during the fourth quarter. Two Sigma Advisers LP now owns 7,740,100 shares of the pharmacy operator's stock worth $72,215,000 after purchasing an additional 5,036,300 shares in the last quarter. Deutsche Bank AG increased its holdings in Walgreens Boots Alliance by 29.7% in the fourth quarter. Deutsche Bank AG now owns 6,125,374 shares of the pharmacy operator's stock valued at $57,150,000 after buying an additional 1,403,357 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Bank of New York Mellon Corp raised its stake in Walgreens Boots Alliance by 3.9% in the first quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 5,645,380 shares of the pharmacy operator's stock valued at $63,059,000 after buying an additional 212,997 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 58.59% of the company's stock.

Walgreens Boots Alliance Stock Performance

Shares of WBA opened at $11.94 on Monday. Walgreens Boots Alliance, Inc. has a 1 year low of $8.08 and a 1 year high of $13.25. The company's 50 day simple moving average is $11.49 and its 200 day simple moving average is $11.10. The company has a market capitalization of $10.33 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -1.64, a PEG ratio of 1.40 and a beta of 0.80. 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 quarterly earnings results on Thursday, June 26th. The pharmacy operator reported $0.38 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.34 by $0.04. Walgreens Boots Alliance had a positive return on equity of 17.66% and a negative net margin of 4.07%. The company had revenue of $38.99 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $36.72 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned $0.63 EPS. The firm's revenue was up 7.2% on a year-over-year basis. On average, sell-side analysts predict that Walgreens Boots Alliance, Inc. will post 1.6 EPS for the current year.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research firms have recently commented on WBA. UBS Group reiterated a "neutral" rating on shares of Walgreens Boots Alliance in a report on Thursday, June 26th. Wall Street Zen started coverage on shares of Walgreens Boots Alliance in a research note on Wednesday, May 21st. They issued a "hold" rating on the stock. Finally, Morgan Stanley reissued an "underweight" rating on shares of Walgreens Boots Alliance in a report on Thursday, June 26th. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have assigned a hold rating and two have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of "Hold" and an average target price 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.

Want to see what other hedge funds are holding WBA? Visit HoldingsChannel.com to get the latest 13F filings and insider trades for Walgreens Boots Alliance, Inc. (NASDAQ:WBA - Free Report).

This instant news alert was generated by narrative science technology and financial data from MarketBeat in order to provide readers with the fastest and most accurate reporting. This story was reviewed by MarketBeat's editorial team prior to publication. Please send any questions or comments about this story to contact@marketbeat.com.