Gateway Investment Advisers LLC Purchases 6,315 Shares of Walgreens Boots Alliance, Inc. (NASDAQ:WBA)

Gateway Investment Advisers LLC raised its position in shares of Walgreens Boots Alliance, Inc. (NASDAQ:WBA) by 81.9% during the first quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 14,024 shares of the pharmacy operator’s stock after acquiring an additional 6,315 shares during the quarter. Gateway Investment Advisers LLC’s holdings in Walgreens Boots Alliance were worth $304,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of the company. Highlander Capital Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of Walgreens Boots Alliance during the fourth quarter valued at about $26,000. Pineridge Advisors LLC acquired a new position in shares of Walgreens Boots Alliance during the fourth quarter valued at about $26,000. Venturi Wealth Management LLC raised its holdings in shares of Walgreens Boots Alliance by 1,241.8% during the fourth quarter. Venturi Wealth Management LLC now owns 1,060 shares of the pharmacy operator’s stock valued at $28,000 after purchasing an additional 981 shares during the period. Rocky Mountain Advisers LLC acquired a new position in shares of Walgreens Boots Alliance during the fourth quarter valued at about $30,000. Finally, Quest Partners LLC acquired a new position in shares of Walgreens Boots Alliance during the fourth quarter valued at about $30,000. Institutional investors own 58.59% of the company’s stock.

Walgreens Boots Alliance Price Performance

Walgreens Boots Alliance stock opened at $15.66 on Thursday. Walgreens Boots Alliance, Inc. has a twelve month low of $14.62 and a twelve month high of $31.32. The firm has a 50 day moving average price of $16.76 and a 200-day moving average price of $20.36. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.50, a current ratio of 0.66 and a quick ratio of 0.32.

Walgreens Boots Alliance (NASDAQ:WBA) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, March 28th. The pharmacy operator reported $1.20 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.82 by $0.38. The company had revenue of $37.05 billion during 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%. Walgreens Boots Alliance’s revenue for the quarter was up 6.3% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the firm earned $1.16 EPS. On average, sell-side analysts predict that Walgreens Boots Alliance, Inc. will post 3.21 EPS for the current year.

Walgreens Boots Alliance Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, June 12th. Investors of record on Tuesday, May 21st were issued a $0.25 dividend. This represents a $1.00 annualized dividend and a yield of 6.39%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, May 20th. Walgreens Boots Alliance’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently -14.29%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Walgreens Boots Alliance news, Director Inderpal S. Bhandari acquired 3,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, April 11th. The stock was bought at an average cost of $18.05 per share, with a total value of $54,150.00. Following the acquisition, the director now owns 3,000 shares in the company, valued at $54,150. The purchase was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. In other news, Director Inderpal S. Bhandari purchased 3,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, April 11th. The stock was purchased at an average cost of $18.05 per share, with a total value of $54,150.00. Following the acquisition, the director now directly owns 3,000 shares in the company, valued at $54,150. The purchase was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, CFO Manmohan Mahajan purchased 6,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, April 2nd. The stock was purchased at an average cost of $19.38 per share, with a total value of $116,280.00. Following the completion of the acquisition, the chief financial officer now 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 owned by insiders.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several brokerages have recently weighed in on WBA. UBS Group dropped their price objective on shares of Walgreens Boots Alliance from $22.00 to $17.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a report on Monday. Evercore ISI lowered their target price on shares of Walgreens Boots Alliance from $18.00 to $17.00 and set an “in-line” rating on the stock in a report on Monday, June 3rd. Barclays lowered their target price on shares of Walgreens Boots Alliance from $21.00 to $19.00 and set an “underweight” rating on the stock in a report on Monday. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft lowered their target price on shares of Walgreens Boots Alliance from $23.00 to $22.00 and set a “hold” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, April 3rd. Finally, Raymond James restated a “market perform” rating on shares of Walgreens Boots Alliance in a report on Tuesday, March 26th. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eleven have assigned a hold rating and two have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $23.07.

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.