Walgreen Boots Alliance (NASDAQ: WBA) released its first-quarter earnings report for FY22 on January 6, 2021 before the market opened. It reported strong results and therefore the WBA stock gained considerably during the pre-market session today.
The stock had gained by 3.35% and was priced at $55.81 (up 1.81 points) at 7:27 a.m. The market capitalization stood at $46.7 billion. The share prices kept on surging thereafter. Yesterday, the share prices gained by 0.97% and closed at $54.
Financial Highlights
- First quarter earnings per share (EPS*) from continuing operations was $4.13, compared with a loss of $0.45 in the year-ago quarter; continuing operations adjusted** EPS increased to $1.68, up 53.1 percent on a constant currency basis
- First quarter sales from continuing operations increased 7.8 percent to $33.9 billion, up 7.6 percent on a constant currency basis
- First quarter operating income from continuing operations increased to $1.3 billion, compared with a loss of $535 million in the year-ago quarter; adjusted operating income from continuing operations increased to $1.8 billion, up 48.5 percent on a constant currency basis
- VillageMD and Shields majority investments closed on November 24th and October 29th, respectively
Analysts Expectations vs. Results
The Zacks Consensus Estimate for earnings per share was pegged at $1.35. However, the company smashed it with a record earnings of $4.13 per share. The revenue estimate was $33.01 billion and Walgreens beat that as well with a revenue of $33.9 billion.
Future Outlook
- Increasing full year adjusted EPS guidance to low-single digit growth, from flat previously, to reflect first quarter performance and continued positive momentum; now includes 2 percentage point impact from incremental investments in team members
- Outlook continues to include 4 percentage point negative impact from previously planned healthcare investments
CEO’s Statement
“First quarter results exceeded our expectations, with a very encouraging performance across all our business segments. I am particularly excited about the progress we’re making in building out Walgreens Health. Our majority investments in VillageMD and Shields closed during the quarter, and we’re rolling out VillageMD primary care co-locations and Walgreens Health Corners at pace. The strong start to the fiscal year reinforces our confidence in the future, and as a result, we are raising our guidance for the full year and increasing investments in our people. Looking ahead, we are well positioned for sustainable, long-term value creation.”
-said Rosalind Brewer, Chief Executive Officer of Walgreens Boots Alliance.
