Shares of Walgreens Boots Alliance Inc. were on track for their lowest close since 2014 after the company reported fiscal second-quarter earnings that missed expectations and slashed its full-year outlook.
Net income fell to $1.16 billion, or $1.24 a share, from $1.35 billion, or $1.36 a share, in the same period a year ago. Excluding nonrecurring items, the company said adjusted EPS declined 5.4% to $1.64, below the $1.72 that FactSet analysts were expecting. Sales, which rose 4.6% to $34.53 billion, came in slightly below the FactSet consensus of $34.58 billion. Same-store retail sales in the U.S. fell 3.8%, which Walgreens blamed on a weak cough, cold and flu season, lower tobacco sales and lower sales of seasonal merchandise. U.S. pharmacy sales, which accounted for more than 70% of U.S. sales in the quarter, increased 9.8% compared with the year-ago quarter, reflecting higher prescription volumes from the acquisition of Rite Aid stores.
In a note to clients, Evercore ISI analyst Ross Muken said Walgreens was “under siege” and called the company’s plan “uninspiring.” Jefferies health-care sector specialist Jared Holz said in another note that Walgreens’s latest results were “unsettling” and that he saw “no apparent strategy.”
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