What Analysts Think of Walgreens Stock Ahead of Earnings [Video]

Walgreens Boots Alliance (WBA) is set to report fiscal first-quarter earnings before the opening bell Friday, with the pharmacy retailer coming off a year in which it was the worst-performing stock in the S&P 500.

Analysts are cautious about Walgreens stock, with five “hold” ratings along with one each “buy” and “sell” rating among the seven analysts tracked by Visible Alpha. The stock has an average price target of $10, about 8% above its Wednesday close.

The pharmacy chain is expected to report $37.33 billion in sales for the quarter, up from $36.71 billion the same time last year, according to estimates compiled by Visible Alpha. Walgreens is projected to report a net loss per share of 2 cents compared to 8 cents last year. However, its adjusted earnings per share (EPS) is expected to be 38 cents per share, which would be down from 66 cents a year ago.

The pharmacy was originally set to report earnings Thursday, but pushed …