Walgreens to close 1,200 US stores as chain attempts to steady operations [Video]

Walgreens will close about 1,200 locations over the next three years as the drugstore chain seeks to turnaround a struggling U.S. business that contributed to a $3 billion quarterly loss.

The company said Tuesday that about 500 store closures will come in the current fiscal year and should immediately support adjusted earnings and free cash flow. Walgreens didn’t say where the store closings would take place.

Walgreens operates about 8,500 stores in the United States and a few thousand overseas. All of the stores that will be closed are in the United States.

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 plan announced Tuesday includes the closing of 300 stores that had been approved under a previous cost-cutting plan.

Walgreens CEO Tim Wentworth said in a statement that fiscal 2025, which began last month, will be an important “rebasing …