On January 4, 2024, Walgreens Boots Alliance, Inc. (WBA) reported its financial results for the first fiscal quarter ending November 30, 2023. The company announced a net loss of $67 million, a significant improvement from the $3.7 billion net loss in the previous year's quarter. This improvement was primarily due to the absence of a $6.5 billion pre-tax charge for opioid-related claims and litigation recorded in the year-ago quarter. Despite the net loss, WBA saw a 10% increase in sales year-over-year, reaching $36.7 billion. The adjusted earnings per share (EPS) decreased by 43.1% to $0.66, influenced by challenging retail market trends in the U.S. and a higher tax rate. WBA also declared a 48% reduction in its quarterly dividend payment to $0.25 per share. The company...Show More

On January 4, 2024, Walgreens Boots Alliance, Inc. (WBA) reported its financial results for the first fiscal quarter ending November 30, 2023. The company announced a net loss of $67 million, a significant improvement from the $3.7 billion net loss in the previous year's quarter. This improvement was primarily due to the absence of a $6.5 billion pre-tax charge for opioid-related claims and litigation recorded in the year-ago quarter. Despite the net loss, WBA saw a 10% increase in sales year-over-year, reaching $36.7 billion. The adjusted earnings per share (EPS) decreased by 43.1% to $0.66, influenced by challenging retail market trends in the U.S. and a higher tax rate. WBA also declared a 48% reduction in its quarterly dividend payment to $0.25 per share. The company maintained its fiscal 2024 adjusted EPS guidance of $3.20 to $3.50, expecting underlying earnings growth to be offset by various factors including a higher tax rate and lower COVID-19 contributions. The U.S. Healthcare segment reported a sales increase to $1.9 billion, with VillageMD and Shields driving growth. The U.S. Retail Pharmacy segment saw a 6.4% increase in sales, while the International segment's sales rose by 12.4%. WBA's CEO Tim Wentworth emphasized the company's focus on strategic options to drive long-term shareholder value, cost management, and cash flow improvement.