Walgreens Declares Regular Quarterly Dividend
DEERFIELD, Ill., Jan. 11, 2006 The board of directors of Walgreen Co. (NYSE, NASDAQ: WAG) today declared a regular quarterly dividend of 6.5 cents per share, payable March 11, 2006, to shareholders of record Feb. 17, 2006.
Walgreens, the nation's largest drugstore chain, last week reported sales for the first quarter ended Nov. 30, 2005, of $10.9 billion, up 10.2 percent from a year earlier. Net earnings for the quarter were up 5.2 percent from a year ago to a record $345.6 million.
Walgreens operates 5,080 drugstores in 45 states and Puerto Rico and plans to open about 475 new stores in fiscal 2006, with a net increase of 390 stores after closings and relocations. Walgreens also provides additional services to pharmacy patients and prescription drug and medical plans through Walgreens Health Services, its managed care division, which includes Walgreens Health Initiatives (a pharmacy benefits manager), Walgreens Mail Service, Walgreens Specialty Pharmacy and Walgreens Home Care.
