Franklin Resources Inc. Boosts Position in Walgreens Boots Alliance, Inc. (NASDAQ:WBA)

Franklin Resources Inc. increased its holdings in Walgreens Boots Alliance, Inc. (NASDAQ:WBA) by 54.4% in the third quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 321,425 shares of the pharmacy operator’s stock after acquiring an additional 113,242 shares during the quarter. Franklin Resources Inc.’s holdings in Walgreens Boots Alliance were worth $2,893,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. State Street Corp raised its holdings in Walgreens Boots Alliance by 18.0% in the 3rd quarter. State Street Corp now owns 42,997,580 shares of the pharmacy operator’s stock worth $385,258,000 after purchasing an additional 6,569,223 shares in the last quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. boosted its stake in shares of Walgreens Boots Alliance by 43.6% during the 3rd quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 10,969,188 shares of the pharmacy operator’s stock valued at $98,284,000 after purchasing an additional 3,329,857 shares in the last quarter. Thompson Siegel & Walmsley LLC increased its position in shares of Walgreens Boots Alliance by 98.8% during the second quarter. Thompson Siegel & Walmsley LLC now owns 6,021,126 shares of the pharmacy operator’s stock valued at $72,826,000 after buying an additional 2,992,648 shares during the period. Two Sigma Advisers LP bought a new position in Walgreens Boots Alliance in the third quarter worth about $24,226,000. Finally, Newport Trust Company LLC purchased a new stake in Walgreens Boots Alliance in the second quarter worth about $31,028,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 58.59% of the company’s stock.

Walgreens Boots Alliance Stock Performance

Shares of WBA opened at $9.19 on Thursday. Walgreens Boots Alliance, Inc. has a 12 month low of $8.08 and a 12 month high of $27.05. The business’s fifty day simple moving average is $9.32 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $10.38. The company has a current ratio of 0.68, a quick ratio of 0.37 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.67. The company has a market cap of $7.94 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -0.92, a P/E/G ratio of 1.36 and a beta of 0.66.

Walgreens Boots Alliance (NASDAQ:WBA) last released its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, October 15th. The pharmacy operator reported $0.39 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.36 by $0.03. The company had revenue of $37.50 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $35.75 billion. Walgreens Boots Alliance had a positive return on equity of 14.23% and a negative net margin of 5.85%. Walgreens Boots Alliance’s revenue for the quarter was up 5.9% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the company earned $0.67 EPS. Research analysts anticipate that Walgreens Boots Alliance, Inc. will post 1.53 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Walgreens Boots Alliance Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, December 12th. Investors of record on Monday, November 18th were given a dividend of $0.25 per share. The ex-dividend date was Monday, November 18th. This represents a $1.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 10.88%. Walgreens Boots Alliance’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is -9.99%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research analysts have weighed in on WBA shares. Barclays upped their target price on Walgreens Boots Alliance from $7.00 to $8.00 and gave the stock an “underweight” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 16th. Jefferies Financial Group decreased their price objective on Walgreens Boots Alliance from $19.00 to $9.00 and set a “hold” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, October 23rd. UBS Group raised their price objective on Walgreens Boots Alliance from $9.00 to $10.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Thursday, October 17th. Evercore ISI upped their target price on shares of Walgreens Boots Alliance from $7.50 to $10.00 and gave the stock an “in-line” rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 16th. Finally, Truist Financial lowered their price target on shares of Walgreens Boots Alliance from $13.00 to $10.00 and set a “hold” rating for the company in a research report on Monday, October 7th. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have assigned a hold rating and two have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Walgreens Boots Alliance has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $12.58.

About Walgreens Boots Alliance

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.