Barclays maintains an 'Underweight' on Walgreen (WAG); 1Q12 Earnings Preview

Barclays maintains an 'Underweight' on Walgreen (NYSE: WAG) price target of $29.00.

Barclays analyst says, "We are maintaining our 1Q12 EPS forecast of $0.64, which is $0.03 below consensus. WAG has already reported total 1Q sales of $18.16B, up 4.7% based on total comps of 2.5%, pharmacy comps of 2.4% and front-end comps of 2.5%. Our model assumes a flattish FIFO gross margin and underlying SG&A dollar growth (excluding drugstore.com) of 4.5%. We are also maintaining our FY12 estimates of $2.65 and our FY13 of $2.71. Our FY12 EPS assumes the dispute with Express Scripts (Nasdaq: ESRX) is not resolved and will have a materially negative impact in 2Q12-4Q12."

For an analyst ratings summary and ratings history on Walgreen click here. For more ratings news on Walgreen click here.

Shares of Walgreen closed at $34.11 yesterday.

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