Yahoo Finance Walgreens Boots Alliance (WBA) Dips More Than Broader Markets: What You Should Know
Walgreens Boots Alliance (WBA) closed at $61.45 in the latest trading session, marking a -0.79% move from the prior day. This move lagged the S&P 500's daily loss of 0.06%. At the same time, the Dow lost 0.37%, and the tech-heavy Nasdaq gained 0.24%.
Coming into today, shares of the largest U.S. drugstore chain had gained 13.46% in the past month. In that same time, the Retail-Wholesale sector gained 1.68%, while the S&P 500 gained 4.72%.
Investors will be hoping for strength from WBA as it approaches its next earnings release. The company is expected to report EPS of $1.39, down 4.79% from the prior-year quarter. Meanwhile, the Zacks Consensus Estimate for revenue is projecting net sales of $34.59 billion, up 2.36% from the year-ago period.
Looking at the full year, our Zacks Consensus Estimates suggest analysts are expecting earnings of $5.93 per share and revenue of $139.86 billion. These totals would mark changes of -1% and +2.19%, respectively, from last year.
Investors might also notice recent changes to analyst estimates for WBA. These revisions help to show the ever-changing nature of near-term business trends. As such, positive estimate revisions reflect analyst optimism about the company's business and profitability.
Based on our research, we believe these estimate revisions are directly related to near-team stock moves. Investors can capitalize on this by using the Zacks Rank. This model considers these estimate changes and provides a simple, actionable rating system.
The Zacks Rank system, which ranges from #1 (Strong Buy) to #5 (Strong Sell), has an impressive outside-audited track record of outperformance, with #1 stocks generating an average annual return of +25% since 1988. Over the past month, the Zacks Consensus EPS estimate has moved 0.1% higher. WBA is currently sporting a Zacks Rank of #3 (Hold).
Investors should also note WBA's current valuation metrics, including its Forward P/E ratio of 10.44. This represents a discount compared to its industry's average Forward P/E of 11.08.
Investors should also note that WBA has a PEG ratio of 1.54 right now. The PEG ratio is similar to the widely-used P/E ratio, but this metric also takes the company's expected earnings growth rate into account. The Retail - Pharmacies and Drug Stores industry currently had an average PEG ratio of 1.54 as of yesterday's close.
The Retail - Pharmacies and Drug Stores industry is part of the Retail-Wholesale sector. This group has a Zacks Industry Rank of 104, putting it in the top 41% of all 250+ industries.
The Zacks Industry Rank gauges the strength of our individual industry groups by measuring the average Zacks Rank of the individual stocks within the groups. Our research shows that the top 50% rated industries outperform the bottom half by a factor of 2 to 1.
To follow WBA in the coming trading sessions, be sure to utilize Zacks.com.
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