Dec 10, 2024 - Business

Walgreens shares surge on reported talks to be taken private

Walgreens shares spiked more than 20% on Tuesday, following a Wall Street Journal report that the company is in talks to be taken private by private equity firm Sycamore Partners.

Why it matters: Walgreens is the country's second-largest non-grocery pharmacy chain, with over 12,000 locations.

Zoom in: Walgreens has a ton of debt coming due over its next two fiscal years.

By the numbers: Walgreens shares had fallen nearly 70% so far in 2024 through Monday, giving it a market value of around $7.5 billion.

That would be a very large deal for Sycamore, which is known for buying troubled retailers, but possible if it were to find some co-investors and/or break up Walgreens into parts.

The bottom line: Big pharmacies like Walgreens and CVS went deep into physical retail at the very time when consumers were moving online, but managed to forestall some troubles thanks to a boom in COVID testing and vaccinations (all of which led to pharmacist burnout and shortages).

Now they're trying to retrench.

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Walgreens shares surge on reported talks to be taken private

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