Categories AlphaGraphs, Earnings, Retail

Earnings: Walgreens Boots Alliance beats in Q1, announces cost management program

Walgreens Boots Alliance (WBA) Thursday reported first-quarter results that surpassed analysts’ expectations. Net sales increased 10% during the quarter to $33.8 billion, slightly higher than $33.58 billion expected by analysts.

Meanwhile, earnings rose 14% to $1.46 per share during the first quarter. This is 3 cents higher than analysts’ prediction of $1.43 per share. Walgreens shares slid 0.4% during pre-market trading, immediately following the announcement.

Walgreens Boots Alliance first quarter 2019 Earnings Infographic

Comparable pharmacy sales increased 2.8% in the US, while in the UK, it declined 3.5%. Comp sales in the UK were hurt by a “weak retail environment.”

CEO Stefano Pessina said, “Today we are reaffirming our fiscal 2019 guidance and announcing the launch of a new transformational cost management program, which is targeting annual cost savings of more than $1 billion by the end of the third year, to better position ourselves to meet our long-term targets.”

Walgreens also reiterated its outlook of 7-12% growth in fiscal 2019 adjusted EPS at constant currency rates.

Walgreens Q4 earnings beat; stock tanks on sales miss

Currently, there are multiple challenges facing the conventional drug store operators in America, and the most serious among them is the inroads being made by Amazon (AMZN) into the drug retail space after the acquisition of PillPack.

Last week, Walgreens suffered a blow after Goldman Sachs downgraded it and cut the price target, citing the fast-changing dynamics of the drug retail sector. The research firm believes the management of Walgreens should be doing much more to tackle the headwinds than just forge partnerships with businesses across industries, such as the alliance with FedEx (FDX) and Kroger (KR).

 

Follow our Google News edition to get the latest stock market, earnings, and financial news at your fingertips 

Most Popular

United Parcel Service (UPS) seems on track to regain lost strength

Cargo giant United Parcel Service, Inc. (NYSE: UPS) ended fiscal 2023 on a weak note, reporting lower revenues and profit for the fourth quarter. The company experienced a slowdown post-pandemic

IPO Alert: What to look for when Boundless Bio goes public

Boundless Bio is preparing to debut on the Nasdaq stock market this week, and become the latest addition to the list of biotech firms that have launched IPOs this year.

Nike (NKE) bets on innovation and partnerships to return to high growth

Sneaker giant Nike, Inc. (NYSE: NKE) has been going through a rough patch for some time, with sales coming under pressure from weak demand and rising competition. Post-pandemic, the company

Add Comment
Loading...
Cancel
Viewing Highlight
Loading...
Highlight
Close
Top