THE WHAT? Walgreens Boots Alliance has lowered its guidance for fiscal 2024 amid a ‘continued challenging environment’. The drug store conglomerate saw adjusted EPS drop 36.6 percent in the third quarter versus the prior year period, while sales inched up 2.6 percent to US$36.4 billion.   

THE DETAILS WBA is now predicting EPS of between US$2.80 and US$2.95 for the full year. Chief Executive Officer Tim Wentworth said, “We continue to face a difficult operating environment, including persistent pressures on the U.S. consumer and the impact of recent marketplace dynamics which have eroded pharmacy margins. Our results and outlook reflect these headwinds, despite solid performance in both our International and U.S. Healthcare segments.”

THE WHY? WBA cited ‘challenging pharmacy industry trends and a worse-than-expected US consumer environment’ as the reason for its lowered guidance.