Townsend & Associates Inc Trims Holdings in Walgreens Boots Alliance, Inc. (NASDAQ:WBA)

Townsend & Associates Inc trimmed its stake in Walgreens Boots Alliance, Inc. (NASDAQ:WBA) by 5.4% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 56,193 shares of the pharmacy operator’s stock after selling 3,239 shares during the period. Townsend & Associates Inc’s holdings in Walgreens Boots Alliance were worth $1,467,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of WBA. Vanguard Group Inc. grew its position in Walgreens Boots Alliance by 14.5% during the 3rd quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 86,675,198 shares of the pharmacy operator’s stock valued at $1,927,656,000 after purchasing an additional 10,962,030 shares during the last quarter. Invesco Ltd. grew its holdings in Walgreens Boots Alliance by 21.5% during the 3rd quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 17,026,420 shares of the pharmacy operator’s stock valued at $378,668,000 after buying an additional 3,013,807 shares in the last quarter. Morgan Stanley grew its stake in shares of Walgreens Boots Alliance by 15.8% in the 3rd quarter. Morgan Stanley now owns 12,584,371 shares of the pharmacy operator’s stock worth $279,876,000 after buying an additional 1,720,228 shares in the last quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. raised its position in Walgreens Boots Alliance by 10.4% during the fourth quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 6,519,845 shares of the pharmacy operator’s stock valued at $170,233,000 after purchasing an additional 613,847 shares during the period. Finally, Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Holdings Inc. lifted its stake in Walgreens Boots Alliance by 12.4% in the fourth quarter. Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Holdings Inc. now owns 3,077,336 shares of the pharmacy operator’s stock worth $80,349,000 after purchasing an additional 339,143 shares during the last quarter. 58.59% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Walgreens Boots Alliance Stock Performance

Shares of WBA stock remained flat at $17.23 during trading hours on Thursday. 3,211,051 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 13,235,578. Walgreens Boots Alliance, Inc. has a 12 month low of $17.13 and a 12 month high of $32.89. The company’s 50-day moving average price is $19.43 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $21.53. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.50, a current ratio of 0.66 and a quick ratio of 0.32. The firm has a market cap of $14.86 billion, a PE ratio of -2.46, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.10 and a beta of 0.80.

Walgreens Boots Alliance (NASDAQ:WBA) last released its earnings results on Thursday, March 28th. The pharmacy operator reported $1.20 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.82 by $0.38. The firm had revenue of $37.05 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $35.86 billion. Walgreens Boots Alliance had a negative net margin of 4.18% and a positive return on equity of 12.11%. The company’s revenue was up 6.3% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $1.16 EPS. Sell-side analysts anticipate that Walgreens Boots Alliance, Inc. will post 3.23 EPS for the current year.

Walgreens Boots Alliance Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, June 12th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, May 21st will be given a $0.25 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, May 20th. This represents a $1.00 annualized dividend and a yield of 5.80%. Walgreens Boots Alliance’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is -14.29%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research analysts have issued reports on the stock. Truist Financial reiterated a “hold” rating and set a $25.00 target price on shares of Walgreens Boots Alliance in a report on Monday, April 1st. Bank of America decreased their price objective on Walgreens Boots Alliance from $23.00 to $22.00 and set an “underperform” rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, March 26th. Morgan Stanley decreased their target price on Walgreens Boots Alliance from $21.00 to $20.00 and set an “underweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, April 1st. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft dropped their price target on Walgreens Boots Alliance from $23.00 to $22.00 and set a “hold” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, April 3rd. Finally, TD Cowen reduced their target price on shares of Walgreens Boots Alliance from $37.00 to $35.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, April 3rd. Four analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, ten have assigned a hold rating and two have given a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $24.36.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Walgreens Boots Alliance news, CFO Manmohan Mahajan bought 6,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, April 2nd. The stock was acquired at an average price of $19.38 per share, with a total value of $116,280.00. Following the completion of the acquisition, the chief financial officer now directly owns 166,969 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $3,235,859.22. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. In related news, Director Inderpal S. Bhandari bought 3,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, April 11th. The shares were acquired at an average price of $18.05 per share, for a total transaction of $54,150.00. Following the purchase, the director now owns 3,000 shares in the company, valued at approximately $54,150. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, CFO Manmohan Mahajan bought 6,000 shares of Walgreens Boots Alliance stock in a transaction on Tuesday, April 2nd. The shares were purchased at an average cost of $19.38 per share, with a total value of $116,280.00. Following the completion of the purchase, the chief financial officer now directly owns 166,969 shares in the company, valued at $3,235,859.22. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. 17.40% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

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.