Benzinga | Jun 30, 2021 11:59AM EDT

Earnings Preview: Walgreens Boots Alliance

On Thursday, July 01, Walgreens Boots Alliance (NASDAQ:WBA) will release its latest earnings report. Decipher the announcement with Benzinga's help.

Net Income, Earnings, And Earnings Per Share

Earnings and EPS are useful metrics of profitability. Total earnings also known as net income is equal to total revenue minus total expenses. Dividing net income by the total number of shares outstanding yields EPS.

Earnings And Revenue

Wall Street analysts see Walgreens Boots Alliance reporting earnings of $1.17 per share on sales of $33.76 billion. Walgreens Boots Alliance EPS in the same period a year ago totaled $0.83. Revenue was $34.63 billion.

What Are Analyst Estimates And Earnings Surprises, And Why Do They Matter?

Wall Street analysts who study this company will publish analyst estimates of revenue and EPS. The averages of all analyst EPS and revenue estimates are called the "consensus estimates"; these consensus estimates can have a significant effect on a company's performance during an earnings release. When a company posts earnings or revenue above or below a consensus estimate, it has posted an "earnings surprise", which can really move a stock depending on the difference between actual and estimated values.

If the company were to report earnings in line when it publishes results Thursday, earnings would be up 40.96%. Revenue would be down 2.52% on a year-over-year basis. Here is how the company's reported EPS has stacked up against analyst estimates in the past: Quarter Q2 2021 Q1 2021 Q4 2020 Q3 2020EPS Estimate 1.11 1.03 0.96 1.18EPS Actual 1.26 1.22 1.02 0.83Revenue Estimate 35.53 B 34.95 B 34.37 B 34.32 BRevenue Actual 32.78 B 36.31 B 34.75 B 34.63 B

Stock Performance

Shares of Walgreens Boots Alliance were trading at $51.99 as of June 29. Over the last 52-week period, shares are up 24.54%. Given that these returns are generally positive, long-term shareholders are probably content going into this earnings release.

Do not be surprised to see the stock move on comments made during its conference call. Walgreens Boots Alliance is scheduled to hold the call at 08:30:00 ET and can be accessed here.