Edgemoor Investment Advisors Inc. Sells 75 Shares of Walgreens Boots Alliance, Inc. (WBA)

Edgemoor Investment Advisors Inc. lowered its position in Walgreens Boots Alliance, Inc. (NASDAQ:WBA) by 1.2% during the first quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The institutional investor owned 6,425 shares of the pharmacy operator’s stock after selling 75 shares during the period. Edgemoor Investment Advisors Inc.’s holdings in Walgreens Boots Alliance were worth $534,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other large investors also recently modified their holdings of WBA. AQR Capital Management LLC raised its position in shares of Walgreens Boots Alliance by 56.2% in the fourth quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 598,173 shares of the pharmacy operator’s stock valued at $49,505,000 after buying an additional 215,231 shares during the period. Guggenheim Capital LLC raised its position in shares of Walgreens Boots Alliance by 8.4% in the fourth quarter. Guggenheim Capital LLC now owns 872,836 shares of the pharmacy operator’s stock valued at $72,235,000 after buying an additional 67,974 shares during the period. Ancora Advisors LLC raised its position in shares of Walgreens Boots Alliance by 10.5% in the fourth quarter. Ancora Advisors LLC now owns 59,762 shares of the pharmacy operator’s stock valued at $4,946,000 after buying an additional 5,680 shares during the period. Seven Eight Capital LP acquired a new position in shares of Walgreens Boots Alliance during the fourth quarter valued at about $836,000. Finally, Kovitz Investment Group Partners LLC raised its position in shares of Walgreens Boots Alliance by 1.7% in the fourth quarter. Kovitz Investment Group Partners LLC now owns 248,959 shares of the pharmacy operator’s stock valued at $20,604,000 after buying an additional 4,143 shares during the period. 61.21% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Shares of Walgreens Boots Alliance, Inc. (NASDAQ:WBA) opened at 78.67 on Wednesday. The firm has a market capitalization of $84.18 billion, a P/E ratio of 19.87 and a beta of 1.26. Walgreens Boots Alliance, Inc. has a one year low of $75.18 and a one year high of $88.00. The firm’s 50-day moving average is $79.40 and its 200 day moving average is $82.66.

Walgreens Boots Alliance (NASDAQ:WBA) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, June 29th. The pharmacy operator reported $1.33 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.30 by $0.03. The firm had revenue of $30.12 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $29.72 billion. Walgreens Boots Alliance had a return on equity of 17.34% and a net margin of 3.69%. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 2.1% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the business earned $1.18 EPS. Equities research analysts predict that Walgreens Boots Alliance, Inc. will post $5.01 earnings per share for the current year.

Walgreens Boots Alliance declared that its Board of Directors has initiated a share repurchase program on Wednesday, April 5th that permits the company to repurchase $1.00 billion in outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization permits the pharmacy operator to purchase shares of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase programs are generally an indication that the company’s leadership believes its shares are undervalued.

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, September 12th. Shareholders of record on Friday, August 18th will be issued a dividend of $0.40 per share. This represents a $1.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.03%. This is a boost from Walgreens Boots Alliance’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.38. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, August 16th. Walgreens Boots Alliance’s dividend payout ratio is presently 37.78%.

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Several research analysts have recently issued reports on the stock. Needham & Company LLC set a $94.00 target price on shares of Walgreens Boots Alliance and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday. Credit Suisse Group reaffirmed a “buy” rating and issued a $97.00 target price on shares of Walgreens Boots Alliance in a research note on Thursday, July 13th. Leerink Swann set a $86.00 target price on shares of Walgreens Boots Alliance and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, July 7th. Citigroup Inc. reaffirmed a “buy” rating on shares of Walgreens Boots Alliance in a research note on Monday, July 3rd. Finally, Guggenheim reaffirmed a “buy” rating on shares of Walgreens Boots Alliance in a research note on Monday, July 3rd. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, three have assigned a hold rating and fourteen have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. The stock presently has an average rating of “Buy” and a consensus price target of $90.69.

In other Walgreens Boots Alliance news, Director William C. Foote sold 2,736 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, May 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $85.89, for a total transaction of $234,995.04. Following the transaction, the director now directly owns 21,887 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,879,874.43. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. 13.50% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Walgreens Boots Alliance Company Profile

Walgreens Boots Alliance, Inc (Walgreens Boots Alliance) is a holding company. The Company is a global pharmacy-led, health and wellbeing enterprise. Walgreens Boots Alliance operates through three divisions, including Retail Pharmacy USA, Retail Pharmacy International and Pharmaceutical Wholesale. The Company’s products are marketed under a number of brands, which include No7, the Botanics range, Almus (generic medicines), Boots Pharmaceuticals and Soap & Glory (bathing and beauty brand).

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