Federated Hermes Inc. Boosts Stake in Walgreens Boots Alliance, Inc. (NASDAQ:WBA)

Federated Hermes Inc. grew its stake in Walgreens Boots Alliance, Inc. (NASDAQ:WBA) by 135.8% in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 3,152 shares of the pharmacy operator’s stock after buying an additional 1,815 shares during the period. Federated Hermes Inc.’s holdings in Walgreens Boots Alliance were worth $35,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in the company. Curat Global LLC purchased a new position in shares of Walgreens Boots Alliance in the first quarter worth $27,000. Sentry Investment Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of Walgreens Boots Alliance in the first quarter worth $27,000. Colonial Trust Co SC raised its holdings in shares of Walgreens Boots Alliance by 79.5% in the fourth quarter. Colonial Trust Co SC now owns 2,928 shares of the pharmacy operator’s stock worth $27,000 after buying an additional 1,297 shares during the last quarter. N.E.W. Advisory Services LLC purchased a new position in shares of Walgreens Boots Alliance in the first quarter worth $43,000. Finally, Vestor Capital LLC purchased a new position in shares of Walgreens Boots Alliance in the first quarter worth $45,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 58.59% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research analysts recently issued reports on the stock. Morgan Stanley reissued an “underweight” rating on shares of Walgreens Boots Alliance in a report on Thursday, June 26th. Wall Street Zen assumed coverage on shares of Walgreens Boots Alliance in a report on Wednesday, May 21st. They set a “hold” rating for the company. Finally, UBS Group reissued a “neutral” rating on shares of Walgreens Boots Alliance in a report on Thursday, June 26th. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have given a hold rating and two have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $10.59.

Walgreens Boots Alliance Stock Performance

NASDAQ:WBA opened at $11.86 on Tuesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.96, a current ratio of 0.60 and a quick ratio of 0.32. The firm has a market capitalization of $10.27 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -1.63, a PEG ratio of 1.40 and a beta of 0.80. The company’s 50-day moving average is $11.50 and its two-hundred day moving average is $11.10. Walgreens Boots Alliance, Inc. has a 1-year low of $8.08 and a 1-year high of $13.25.

Walgreens Boots Alliance (NASDAQ:WBA) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, June 26th. The pharmacy operator reported $0.38 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.34 by $0.04. Walgreens Boots Alliance had a negative net margin of 4.07% and a positive return on equity of 17.66%. The business had revenue of $38.99 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $36.72 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned $0.63 EPS. The business’s revenue was up 7.2% on a year-over-year basis. Analysts forecast that Walgreens Boots Alliance, Inc. will post 1.6 EPS for the current year.

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.