Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. Grows Position in Walgreens Boots Alliance, Inc. (NASDAQ:WBA)

Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. grew its stake in shares of Walgreens Boots Alliance, Inc. (NASDAQ:WBA) by 31.6% in the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 132,456 shares of the pharmacy operator’s stock after buying an additional 31,772 shares during the period. Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co.’s holdings in Walgreens Boots Alliance were worth $1,602,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Atlas Brown Inc. raised its position in Walgreens Boots Alliance by 1.8% in the first quarter. Atlas Brown Inc. now owns 31,593 shares of the pharmacy operator’s stock valued at $685,000 after purchasing an additional 550 shares during the period. Shilanski & Associates Inc. boosted its holdings in Walgreens Boots Alliance by 5.3% in the 1st quarter. Shilanski & Associates Inc. now owns 11,821 shares of the pharmacy operator’s stock worth $256,000 after acquiring an additional 591 shares during the period. First Trust Direct Indexing L.P. boosted its holdings in Walgreens Boots Alliance by 1.9% in the 1st quarter. First Trust Direct Indexing L.P. now owns 32,085 shares of the pharmacy operator’s stock worth $696,000 after acquiring an additional 597 shares during the period. Buckley Wealth Management LLC raised its stake in shares of Walgreens Boots Alliance by 2.1% during the first quarter. Buckley Wealth Management LLC now owns 37,335 shares of the pharmacy operator’s stock valued at $810,000 after purchasing an additional 785 shares during the period. Finally, FinTrust Capital Advisors LLC lifted its position in shares of Walgreens Boots Alliance by 60.4% during the first quarter. FinTrust Capital Advisors LLC now owns 2,130 shares of the pharmacy operator’s stock worth $46,000 after purchasing an additional 802 shares in the last quarter. 58.59% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Walgreens Boots Alliance Stock Performance

Shares of NASDAQ WBA opened at $8.72 on Friday. The company has a quick ratio of 0.31, a current ratio of 0.65 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.49. The firm’s 50-day moving average price is $9.73 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $13.86. Walgreens Boots Alliance, Inc. has a 52-week low of $8.22 and a 52-week high of $27.05. The stock has a market capitalization of $7.53 billion, a P/E ratio of -1.29, a P/E/G ratio of 0.99 and a beta of 0.70.

Walgreens Boots Alliance Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, September 12th. Investors of record on Wednesday, August 21st were given a dividend of $0.25 per share. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, August 21st. This represents a $1.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 11.47%. Walgreens Boots Alliance’s dividend payout ratio is currently -14.84%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities research analysts recently issued reports on WBA shares. Morgan Stanley dropped their price target on shares of Walgreens Boots Alliance from $13.00 to $9.00 and set an “underweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, June 28th. TD Cowen cut their price target on Walgreens Boots Alliance from $22.00 to $16.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, September 12th. Barclays reduced their price target on Walgreens Boots Alliance from $11.00 to $7.00 and set an “underweight” rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, July 23rd. Evercore ISI dropped their price objective on Walgreens Boots Alliance from $17.00 to $10.00 and set an “in-line” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, June 28th. Finally, UBS Group decreased their price target on shares of Walgreens Boots Alliance from $17.00 to $12.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, July 3rd. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have assigned a hold rating and two have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $14.73.

Walgreens Boots Alliance Profile

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.