Ascent Group LLC Acquires Shares of 10,956 Walgreens Boots Alliance, Inc. (NASDAQ:WBA)

Ascent Group LLC bought a new stake in shares of Walgreens Boots Alliance, Inc. (NASDAQ:WBA) in the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm bought 10,956 shares of the pharmacy operator’s stock, valued at approximately $133,000.

Several other large investors also recently modified their holdings of the business. Bontempo Ohly Capital Mgmt LLC grew its stake in shares of Walgreens Boots Alliance by 1.6% during the second quarter. Bontempo Ohly Capital Mgmt LLC now owns 166,556 shares of the pharmacy operator’s stock valued at $2,014,000 after acquiring an additional 2,580 shares in the last quarter. Straight Path Wealth Management grew its stake in shares of Walgreens Boots Alliance by 2.8% during the second quarter. Straight Path Wealth Management now owns 54,500 shares of the pharmacy operator’s stock valued at $659,000 after acquiring an additional 1,500 shares in the last quarter. Scientech Research LLC acquired a new position in Walgreens Boots Alliance in the second quarter worth about $1,215,000. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company grew its stake in Walgreens Boots Alliance by 2.1% in the second quarter. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company now owns 436,849 shares of the pharmacy operator’s stock worth $5,284,000 after purchasing an additional 8,973 shares in the last quarter. Finally, MBB Public Markets I LLC acquired a new position in Walgreens Boots Alliance in the second quarter worth about $632,000. 58.59% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities analysts recently commented on WBA shares. Evercore ISI decreased their price target on Walgreens Boots Alliance from $17.00 to $10.00 and set an “in-line” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, June 28th. Truist Financial decreased their price target on Walgreens Boots Alliance from $20.00 to $13.00 and set a “hold” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, June 28th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. decreased their price target on Walgreens Boots Alliance from $20.00 to $15.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, August 30th. Barclays decreased their price target on Walgreens Boots Alliance from $11.00 to $7.00 and set an “underweight” rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, July 23rd. Finally, Bank of America decreased their target price on Walgreens Boots Alliance from $11.00 to $7.50 and set an “underperform” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, September 4th. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, ten have issued a hold rating and two have given a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $14.73.

Walgreens Boots Alliance Stock Performance

WBA opened at $8.70 on Thursday. The business’s 50 day moving average is $9.85 and its 200-day moving average is $14.03. The stock has a market cap of $7.51 billion, a PE ratio of -1.29, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.03 and a beta of 0.70. The company has a current ratio of 0.65, a quick ratio of 0.31 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.49. Walgreens Boots Alliance, Inc. has a twelve month low of $8.22 and a twelve month high of $27.05.

Walgreens Boots Alliance Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, September 12th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, August 21st were issued a dividend of $0.25 per share. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, August 21st. This represents a $1.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 11.49%. Walgreens Boots Alliance’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently -14.84%.

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.