UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC Increases Stake in Walgreens Boots Alliance, Inc. (NASDAQ:WBA)

UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC grew its position in Walgreens Boots Alliance, Inc. (NASDAQ:WBA) by 12.1% in the 3rd quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The institutional investor owned 7,594,475 shares of the pharmacy operator’s stock after purchasing an additional 817,762 shares during the quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC’s holdings in Walgreens Boots Alliance were worth $68,046,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Iron Horse Wealth Management LLC boosted its position in shares of Walgreens Boots Alliance by 162.5% during the second 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. boosted its holdings in shares of Walgreens Boots Alliance by 87.0% during the 2nd quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 2,324 shares of the pharmacy operator’s stock valued at $28,000 after acquiring an additional 1,081 shares during the last quarter. Continuum Advisory LLC raised its holdings 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 during the last quarter. Sentry Investment Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of Walgreens Boots Alliance during the third quarter valued at approximately $30,000. Finally, Eastern Bank bought a new position in Walgreens Boots Alliance during the third quarter valued at approximately $33,000. Institutional investors own 58.59% of the company’s stock.

Walgreens Boots Alliance Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ:WBA opened at $8.98 on Tuesday. The company has a market capitalization of $7.76 billion, a P/E ratio of -0.90, a P/E/G ratio of 1.18 and a beta of 0.66. Walgreens Boots Alliance, Inc. has a 1-year low of $8.08 and a 1-year high of $27.05. The firm’s 50 day simple moving average is $9.14 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $11.20. 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 (NASDAQ:WBA) last released 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. The company had revenue of $37.50 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $35.75 billion. Walgreens Boots Alliance had a negative net margin of 5.85% and a positive return on equity of 14.23%. Walgreens Boots Alliance’s revenue for the quarter was up 5.9% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company earned $0.67 EPS. Research analysts expect that Walgreens Boots Alliance, Inc. will post 1.53 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Walgreens Boots Alliance Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, December 12th. Investors of record on Monday, November 18th will be given a dividend of $0.25 per share. This represents a $1.00 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 11.14%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, November 18th. Walgreens Boots Alliance’s dividend payout ratio is currently -9.99%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities research analysts have commented on the stock. JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut their target price on shares of 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. UBS Group lifted their price objective on Walgreens Boots Alliance from $9.00 to $10.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Thursday, October 17th. TD Cowen lowered their target price on Walgreens Boots Alliance from $16.00 to $14.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, October 22nd. Morgan Stanley dropped their target price on Walgreens Boots Alliance from $9.00 to $7.00 and set an “underweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, October 11th. Finally, Evercore ISI upped their price target on shares of Walgreens Boots Alliance from $7.50 to $10.00 and gave the company an “in-line” rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 16th. Four analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have given a hold rating and two have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $12.88.

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.