Optas LLC Takes Position in Walgreens Boots Alliance, Inc. (NASDAQ:WBA)

Optas LLC acquired a new position in Walgreens Boots Alliance, Inc. (NASDAQ:WBA) in the first quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The institutional investor acquired 16,952 shares of the pharmacy operator’s stock, valued at approximately $189,000.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in WBA. Curat Global LLC acquired a new position in shares of Walgreens Boots Alliance in the first quarter valued at approximately $27,000. Sentry Investment Management LLC acquired a new position in Walgreens Boots Alliance in the 1st quarter worth $27,000. Riverview Trust Co increased its holdings in Walgreens Boots Alliance by 123.8% during the 4th quarter. Riverview Trust Co now owns 2,874 shares of the pharmacy operator’s stock worth $27,000 after purchasing an additional 1,590 shares in the last quarter. Colonial Trust Co SC lifted its holdings in shares of Walgreens Boots Alliance by 79.5% in the fourth quarter. Colonial Trust Co SC now owns 2,928 shares of the pharmacy operator’s stock valued at $27,000 after purchasing an additional 1,297 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Venturi Wealth Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of Walgreens Boots Alliance during the fourth quarter worth about $28,000. 58.59% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Walgreens Boots Alliance Stock Up 0.1%

Walgreens Boots Alliance stock opened at $11.40 on Tuesday. The firm has a market capitalization of $9.87 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -1.11, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.31 and a beta of 0.78. The firm’s fifty day moving average price is $11.11 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $10.70. Walgreens Boots Alliance, Inc. has a 1-year low of $8.08 and a 1-year high of $16.25. The company has a current ratio of 0.64, a quick ratio of 0.30 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.68.

Walgreens Boots Alliance (NASDAQ:WBA) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, April 8th. The pharmacy operator reported $0.63 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.53 by $0.10. The company had revenue of $38.59 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $37.90 billion. Walgreens Boots Alliance had a negative net margin of 5.87% and a positive return on equity of 17.61%. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 4.1% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned $1.20 earnings per share. On average, equities research analysts predict that Walgreens Boots Alliance, Inc. will post 1.6 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Buying and Selling at Walgreens Boots Alliance

In other news, Chairman Stefano Pessina acquired 832,258 shares of Walgreens Boots Alliance stock in a transaction dated Sunday, April 27th. The shares were purchased at an average cost of $11.01 per share, for a total transaction of $9,163,160.58. Following the transaction, the chairman now owns 145,621,079 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,603,288,079.79. This trade represents a 0.57% increase in their ownership of the stock. The purchase was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Insiders own 17.50% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of brokerages have commented 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 for the company. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft cut Walgreens Boots Alliance from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating and cut their price objective for the company from $11.00 to $9.00 in a research report on Friday, February 28th. Finally, Wolfe Research raised Walgreens Boots Alliance to a “hold” rating in a report on Monday, February 24th. Four analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have issued a hold rating and two have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Walgreens Boots Alliance currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average 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.