Intact Investment Management Inc. Boosts Stock Position in Walgreens Boots Alliance, Inc. (NASDAQ:WBA)

Intact Investment Management Inc. boosted its holdings in Walgreens Boots Alliance, Inc. (NASDAQ:WBA) by 283.0% during the 4th quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The firm owned 242,800 shares of the pharmacy operator’s stock after acquiring an additional 179,400 shares during the period. Intact Investment Management Inc.’s holdings in Walgreens Boots Alliance were worth $6,340,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of WBA. Vanguard Group Inc. boosted its position in Walgreens Boots Alliance by 14.5% in the third quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 86,675,198 shares of the pharmacy operator’s stock worth $1,927,656,000 after purchasing an additional 10,962,030 shares during the last quarter. Invesco Ltd. boosted its position in Walgreens Boots Alliance by 21.5% in the third quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 17,026,420 shares of the pharmacy operator’s stock worth $378,668,000 after purchasing an additional 3,013,807 shares during the last quarter. Morgan Stanley boosted its position in Walgreens Boots Alliance by 15.8% in the third quarter. Morgan Stanley now owns 12,584,371 shares of the pharmacy operator’s stock worth $279,876,000 after purchasing an additional 1,720,228 shares during the last quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC boosted its position in Walgreens Boots Alliance by 1,985.1% in the fourth quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC now owns 889,546 shares of the pharmacy operator’s stock worth $23,226,000 after purchasing an additional 846,884 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Grantham Mayo Van Otterloo & Co. LLC boosted its position in Walgreens Boots Alliance by 85.1% in the third quarter. Grantham Mayo Van Otterloo & Co. LLC now owns 1,752,170 shares of the pharmacy operator’s stock worth $38,968,000 after purchasing an additional 805,332 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 58.59% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

WBA has been the topic of several research reports. Raymond James restated a “market perform” rating on shares of Walgreens Boots Alliance in a research note on Tuesday, March 26th. Barclays initiated coverage on Walgreens Boots Alliance in a research note on Wednesday, January 3rd. They issued an “underweight” rating and a $21.00 target price on the stock. Leerink Partnrs restated a “market perform” rating on shares of Walgreens Boots Alliance in a research note on Monday, February 26th. TheStreet upgraded Walgreens Boots Alliance from a “d+” rating to a “c-” rating in a research note on Monday, January 8th. Finally, Bank of America lowered their target price on Walgreens Boots Alliance from $23.00 to $22.00 and set an “underperform” rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, March 26th. Four analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, ten have assigned a hold rating and two have issued a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $24.36.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, Director Inderpal S. Bhandari acquired 3,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, April 11th. The stock was purchased at an average cost of $18.05 per share, for a total transaction of $54,150.00. Following the acquisition, the director now owns 3,000 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $54,150. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. In other news, Director Valerie B. Jarrett acquired 4,456 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, January 29th. The stock was purchased at an average cost of $22.44 per share, for a total transaction of $99,992.64. Following the acquisition, the director now owns 4,456 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $99,992.64. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, Director Inderpal S. Bhandari bought 3,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, April 11th. The shares were bought at an average price of $18.05 per share, with a total value of $54,150.00. Following the completion of the acquisition, the director now directly owns 3,000 shares in the company, valued at $54,150. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. Insiders have acquired 13,456 shares of company stock worth $270,423 in the last ninety days. 17.40% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Walgreens Boots Alliance Price Performance

NASDAQ WBA traded up $0.10 during trading on Friday, reaching $17.70. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 6,592,036 shares, compared to its average volume of 13,083,050. The stock has a market capitalization of $15.27 billion, a PE ratio of -2.53, a P/E/G ratio of 1.09 and a beta of 0.73. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.50, a current ratio of 0.66 and a quick ratio of 0.32. The firm has a fifty day moving average of $20.01 and a 200 day moving average of $21.77. Walgreens Boots Alliance, Inc. has a one year low of $17.49 and a one year high of $35.38.

Walgreens Boots Alliance (NASDAQ:WBA) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, March 28th. The pharmacy operator reported $1.20 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.82 by $0.38. The business had revenue of $37.05 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $35.86 billion. Walgreens Boots Alliance had a positive return on equity of 12.11% and a negative net margin of 4.18%. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 6.3% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $1.16 EPS. Analysts expect that Walgreens Boots Alliance, Inc. will post 3.23 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Walgreens Boots Alliance Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, June 12th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, May 21st will be paid a $0.25 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Monday, May 20th. This represents a $1.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 5.65%. Walgreens Boots Alliance’s dividend payout ratio is currently -14.29%.

Walgreens Boots Alliance 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.