Walgreens Boots Alliance (WBA) Dips More Than Broader Markets: What You Should Know
Walgreens Boots Alliance (WBA) closed the most recent trading day at $50.57, moving -1.02% from the previous trading session. This change lagged the S&P 500's 0.46% loss on the day.
Heading into today, shares of the largest U.S. drugstore chain had gained 2.76% over the past month, outpacing the Retail-Wholesale sector's gain of 1.25% and the S&P 500's gain of 1.93% in that time.
Investors will be hoping for strength from WBA as it approaches its next earnings release. On that day, WBA is projected to report earnings of $1.01 per share, which would represent a year-over-year decline of 0.98%. Meanwhile, the Zacks Consensus Estimate for revenue is projecting net sales of $33.18 billion, down 4.49% from the year-ago period.
Investors might also notice recent changes to analyst estimates for WBA. Recent revisions tend to reflect the latest near-term business trends. As a result, we can interpret positive estimate revisions as a good sign for the company's business outlook.
Our research shows that these estimate changes are directly correlated with near-term stock prices. To benefit from this, we have developed the Zacks Rank, a proprietary model which takes these estimate changes into account and provides an 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. The Zacks Consensus EPS estimate has moved 0.64% lower within the past month. WBA is currently sporting a Zacks Rank of #3 (Hold).
Looking at its valuation, WBA is holding a Forward P/E ratio of 10. This valuation marks a discount compared to its industry's average Forward P/E of 10.99.
Investors should also note that WBA has a PEG ratio of 1.46 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 1.6 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 118, putting it in the top 47% 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.
Be sure to follow all of these stock-moving metrics, and many more, on Zacks.com.
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Walgreens Boots Alliance, Inc. (WBA) : Free Stock Analysis Report
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