US drugstore chain Walgreens Boots Alliance Inc's quarterly profit beat analysts' expectations on Thursday, as more people bought prescription drugs from its pharmacies.
Sales in its US pharmacies rose 4.3% in the third quarter as it filed 290.7 million prescriptions.
The company maintained its full-year adjusted profit growth forecast. In April, Walgreens cut the forecast from a range of 7% to 12% to roughly flat.
Progress In Q3
"Following a difficult second quarter, we made progress in the third quarter against the strategic goals we set," Chief Executive Officer Stefano Pessina said in a statement.
In April, Walgreens said it would speed up cost cuts, which include shutting stores and consolidating warehouses, to stem some of the losses from the challenging market conditions. The company had estimated more than $1.5 billion (€1.32 billion) in annual savings by 2022.
Net income attributable to Walgreens fell to $1.03 billion (€910 million), or $1.13 per share, in the quarter ended 31 May, from $1.34 billion(€1.18 billion), or $1.35 per share, a year earlier.
Excluding items, the company earned $1.47 per share, beating analysts' expectations of $1.43 per share, according to IBES data from Refinitiv.
Revenue rose nearly 1% to $34.59 billion (€30.41 billion). Analysts had expected revenue of $34.46 billion (€30.30 billion).
News by Reuters, edited by ESM. Click subscribe to sign up to ESM: European Supermarket Magazine.
