Walgreens Boots Alliance Inc. shares rose 1.2% premarket, after the company posted better-than-expected earnings for its fiscal first quarter through Nov. 30. The drug store chain said it had net income of $822 million, or 81 cents a share, in the quarter, down from $1.07 billion, or 97 cents a share, in the year-earlier period. Adjusted per-share earnings came to $1.28, ahead of the FactSet consensus of $1.26. Sales climbed to $30.7 billion from $28.5 billion, also ahead of the FactSet consensus of $30.4 billion. Chief Executive Stefano Pessina said earnings were driven by continued prescription volume and market share growth in retail pharmacy in the U.S. The company raised the low end of its fiscal 2018 EPS guidance range by 5 cents to $5.45 to $5.70. Shares have fallen 9% in the last 12 months, while the S&P 500 has gained 19%.
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