Walgreens lays out plan to shutter 1,200 drugstores

Walgreens plans to close about 1,200 locations over the next three years as the drugstore chain seeks to turnaround its struggling U.S. business.

The company said Tuesday that about 500 store closures will happen in its current fiscal year and should immediately help adjusted earnings and free cash flow.

Walgreens Boots Alliance Inc. leaders said in late June that they were finalizing a turnaround plan for its U.S. business, and that push could result in the closing of hundreds of underperforming stores.

The company, like its competitors, has been struggling for years with tight reimbursement for the prescriptions it sells as well as other challenges like rising costs to operate its stores.

The Deerfield company also has been backing away from a plan to add primary care clinics next to some if its stores after launching an aggressive expansion under previous CEO Rosalind Brewer.

Walgreens said in August that it was reviewing its U.S. healthcare business, and it might sell all or part of its VillageMD clinic business. That announcement came less than two years after the company said it would spend billions to expand the business.

The company started 2024 by cutting the dividend it pays shareholders to get more cash to grow its business. The drugstore chain then slashed its forecast for fiscal 2024 in June.

Walgreens shares jumped Tuesday in early-morning trading.

The stock had shed nearly two thirds of their value so far this year, falling to $9 as of Monday’s close.

Originally Published: October 15, 2024 at 6:25 a.m.