PNC Financial Services Group Inc. Acquires 64,586 Shares of Walgreens Boots Alliance, Inc. (NASDAQ:WBA)

PNC Financial Services Group Inc. raised its holdings in Walgreens Boots Alliance, Inc. (NASDAQ:WBA - Free Report) by 23.4% during the third quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 340,431 shares of the pharmacy operator's stock after buying an additional 64,586 shares during the period. PNC Financial Services Group Inc.'s holdings in Walgreens Boots Alliance were worth $3,050,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

A number of other hedge funds have also recently made changes to their positions in the business. Iron Horse Wealth Management LLC raised its position in Walgreens Boots Alliance by 162.5% in the 2nd quarter. Iron Horse Wealth Management LLC now owns 2,100 shares of the pharmacy operator's stock valued at $25,000 after buying an additional 1,300 shares during the last quarter. Blue Trust Inc. lifted its position in shares of Walgreens Boots Alliance by 87.0% during the second quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 2,324 shares of the pharmacy operator's stock valued at $28,000 after purchasing an additional 1,081 shares in the last quarter. Continuum Advisory LLC lifted its position in shares of Walgreens Boots Alliance by 71.2% during the second quarter. Continuum Advisory LLC now owns 2,453 shares of the pharmacy operator's stock valued at $30,000 after purchasing an additional 1,020 shares in the last quarter. Sentry Investment Management LLC purchased a new position in Walgreens Boots Alliance during the third quarter worth about $30,000. Finally, Eastern Bank bought a new stake in Walgreens Boots Alliance in the 3rd quarter worth about $33,000. 58.59% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research firms have commented on WBA. Evercore ISI lifted 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. Jefferies Financial Group dropped their price target on Walgreens Boots Alliance from $19.00 to $9.00 and set a "hold" rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, October 23rd. JPMorgan Chase & Co. decreased their target price on Walgreens Boots Alliance from $20.00 to $15.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a research report on Friday, August 30th. Truist Financial lowered their target price on Walgreens Boots Alliance from $13.00 to $10.00 and set a "hold" rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, October 7th. Finally, TD Cowen decreased their price objective on shares of Walgreens Boots Alliance from $16.00 to $14.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, October 22nd. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have issued a hold rating and two have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $12.88.

Walgreens Boots Alliance Stock Performance

Shares of Walgreens Boots Alliance stock traded up $0.40 during trading hours on Monday, reaching $9.06. The company had a trading volume of 29,634,041 shares, compared to its average volume of 17,541,830. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.67, a current ratio of 0.68 and a quick ratio of 0.37. Walgreens Boots Alliance, Inc. has a one year low of $8.08 and a one year high of $27.05. The firm has a market cap of $7.83 billion, a PE ratio of -0.91, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.14 and a beta of 0.69. The business has a fifty day simple moving average of $9.14 and a 200 day simple moving average of $11.45.

Walgreens Boots Alliance (NASDAQ:WBA - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Tuesday, October 15th. The pharmacy operator reported $0.39 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $0.36 by $0.03. Walgreens Boots Alliance had a positive return on equity of 14.23% and a negative net margin of 5.85%. The business had revenue of $37.50 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $35.75 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm earned $0.67 EPS. The company's quarterly revenue was up 5.9% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, 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 company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, December 12th. Shareholders of record on Monday, November 18th will be issued a $0.25 dividend. This represents a $1.00 annualized dividend and a yield of 11.04%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, November 18th. Walgreens Boots Alliance's payout ratio is -9.99%.

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.