Walgreens delivered a strong second-quarter performance for 2025, beating expectations and making headway in reducing its losses.
The pharmacy giant posted a 4.1% year-over-year increase in sales, reaching $38.6 billion. Meanwhile, its net loss dropped sharply by 51.7% to $2.9 billion, down from $5.9 billion in the same period last year.
Walgreen’s CEO Tim Wentworth said: “Second quarter results reflect disciplined cost management and improvement in US healthcare, which were partially offset by weaker front-end results in US retail pharmacy, while significant legal settlements resulted in continued negative free cash flow.
“We remain in the early stages of our turnaround plan and continue to expect that meaningful value creation will take time, enhanced focus, and balancing future cash needs with necessary investments to navigate a changing pharmacy and retail landscape.”
The company ended the quarter with earnings per share of $0.63 compared to the expected $0.53 projected by Wall Street, according to CNBC.
Moving forward, the pharmacy giant is set to be acquired by private equity firm Sycamore Partners for $10 billion after struggling to stay afloat in recent years. The company withdrew its 2025 fiscal outlook ahead of its decision to go private.
As part of its ongoing restructuring efforts in response to rising economic pressures, Walgreens announced in October 2024 plans to close 1,200 stores in the US by the end of fiscal 2027, joining the list of retailers downsizing their brick-and-mortar fleet.
Walgreens has also recently expanded its presence in the US with a delivery partnership with Grubhub.
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