tru Independence LLC Sells 8,577 Shares of Walgreens Boots Alliance, Inc. (NASDAQ:WBA)

tru Independence LLC reduced its holdings in shares of Walgreens Boots Alliance, Inc. (NASDAQ:WBA) by 9.9% during the first quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 78,020 shares of the pharmacy operator’s stock after selling 8,577 shares during the quarter. tru Independence LLC’s holdings in Walgreens Boots Alliance were worth $1,692,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of WBA. Highlander Capital Management LLC bought a new position in shares of Walgreens Boots Alliance during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $26,000. Pineridge Advisors LLC purchased a new position in Walgreens Boots Alliance in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $26,000. Venturi Wealth Management LLC grew its holdings in Walgreens Boots Alliance by 1,241.8% during the fourth quarter. Venturi Wealth Management LLC now owns 1,060 shares of the pharmacy operator’s stock valued at $28,000 after purchasing an additional 981 shares during the period. Rocky Mountain Advisers LLC purchased a new stake in Walgreens Boots Alliance in the fourth quarter worth $30,000. Finally, Quest Partners LLC bought a new stake in shares of Walgreens Boots Alliance in the fourth quarter valued at $30,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 58.59% of the company’s stock.

Walgreens Boots Alliance Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ WBA traded up $0.02 during trading hours on Tuesday, reaching $11.60. 8,808,243 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 14,520,585. The company’s 50-day simple moving average is $16.49 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $20.14. The company has a market capitalization of $10.01 billion, a P/E ratio of -1.72, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.82 and a beta of 0.72. Walgreens Boots Alliance, Inc. has a 52-week low of $11.40 and a 52-week high of $31.32. The company has a quick ratio of 0.31, a current ratio of 0.65 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.49.

Walgreens Boots Alliance (NASDAQ:WBA) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, June 27th. The pharmacy operator reported $0.63 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.68 by ($0.05). Walgreens Boots Alliance had a positive return on equity of 12.63% and a negative net margin of 3.99%. The business had revenue of $36.40 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $35.94 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $1.00 earnings per share. The company’s revenue was up 2.8% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities research analysts forecast that Walgreens Boots Alliance, Inc. will post 2.94 EPS for the current year.

Walgreens Boots Alliance Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, June 12th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, May 21st were paid a dividend of $0.25 per share. The ex-dividend date was Monday, May 20th. This represents a $1.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 8.62%. Walgreens Boots Alliance’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently -14.84%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

WBA has been the subject of several research reports. Royal Bank of Canada cut their price target on Walgreens Boots Alliance from $22.00 to $13.00 and set a “sector perform” rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft reduced their target price on shares of Walgreens Boots Alliance from $23.00 to $22.00 and set a “hold” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, April 3rd. Truist Financial lowered their target price on shares of Walgreens Boots Alliance from $20.00 to $13.00 and set a “hold” rating on the stock in a report on Friday. SVB Leerink decreased their price target on Walgreens Boots Alliance from $23.00 to $22.00 and set a “market perform” rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, March 18th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut their price objective on shares of Walgreens Boots Alliance from $30.00 to $20.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report on Monday. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eleven have assigned a hold rating and two have given a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $18.07.

Insider Transactions at Walgreens Boots Alliance

In related news, Director Inderpal S. Bhandari acquired 3,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Thursday, April 11th. The stock was purchased at an average price of $18.05 per share, for a total transaction of $54,150.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now owns 3,000 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $54,150. The acquisition was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Company insiders own 17.40% of the company’s stock.

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.