On Thursday, shares of Walgreens Boots Alliance fell slightly in pre-market trading following the release of their second-quarter earnings report. Despite the stock dropping by 2%, it has experienced a decrease of over 20% since the beginning of the year.
The company surpassed Wall Street expectations with $37.05 billion in revenue and $1.20 earnings per share, but CEO Tim Wentworth acknowledged the challenging retail environment that Walgreens is navigating. The company reported a loss of $5.91 billion due to issues like high inflation and dwindling reimbursement rates from pharmacy-benefit managers.
Wentworth, who took over the company after working at Cigna, emphasized the ongoing restructuring efforts that have been a priority during his tenure. In February, Walgreens was removed from the Dow Jones Industrial Average and replaced by Amazon.
In response to these challenges, Walgreens has made operational changes to improve its financial health, such as closing distribution centers in Florida and Connecticut. Additionally, they reduced their stock dividend in order to focus on investing in their pharmacy and healthcare services. Walgreens revised its full-year earnings guidance to be between $3.20 and $3.35 per share.
