Full Walgreen Earnings Preview

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By Chris Lange Published
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Walgreen Co. (NYSE: WAG) is set to report its earnings before the market opens Tuesday. This drugstore retail giant hopes to turn around investors’ negativity after a rough month of August that has left shares range bound ever since.

Thomson Reuters has estimates of $0.74 in earnings per share and $19.02 billion in revenues. Compared this to the same quarter in the previous year, earnings were $0.73 in earnings per share and $17.94 billion in revenues. Estimates for the following quarter are $0.76 in earnings per share and $19.20 billion in revenues.

Walgreen has seen its shares fall sharply to $57.75 in August from $68.74 which was a total loss of roughly 16%. Share prices dropped then when Walgreen refused to invert its corporate domicile for a lower effective tax rate when it acquired Alliance Boots. Since that time, share prices have held consistently in a trading range of just under $60 to $64 — breaking back under the $60 handle on Monday.

Options traders are braced for a move of up to $2.00 in either direction based upon the $60 puts and calls. There is active trading in many of the strike prices in both the puts and calls for October expiration.

Walgreen’s stock chart has some equal concerns. The 50-day moving average dipped under the 200-day moving average a week or so ago. That 200-day average is now up at $65.07, and the 50-day moving average is $63.86. It would seem that these moving averages may continue to act as resistance on the chart.

Walgreen shares were down 1.3% at $59.39 with just an hour and a half left in regular trading on Monday ahead of the report. The company has a consensus price target of $70.30 and its 52-week trading range is $53.76 to $76.39. It has a market cap of $56 billion.

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About the Author Chris Lange →

Chris Lange is a writer for 24/7 Wall St., based in Houston. He has covered financial markets over the past decade with an emphasis on healthcare, tech, and IPOs. During this time, he has published thousands of articles with insightful analysis across these complex fields. Currently, Lange's focus is on military and geopolitical topics.

Lange's work has been quoted or mentioned in Forbes, The New York Times, Business Insider, USA Today, MSN, Yahoo, The Verge, Vice, The Intelligencer, Quartz, Nasdaq, The Motley Fool, Fox Business, International Business Times, The Street, Seeking Alpha, Barron’s, Benzinga, and many other major publications.

A graduate of Southwestern University in Georgetown, Texas, Lange majored in business with a particular focus on investments. He has previous experience in the banking industry and startups.

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