On June 25, Walgreen (NYSE:WAG) released third-quarter earnings for the period ended May 31.

  • Soaring sales of generic drugs helped revenue reach a record $13.7 billion.
  • Margins improved across the board as management lowered its LIFO inflation index and began focusing on higher-margin generic drugs.
  • The company is in its fourth year of posting comps in excess of 5% from front-end sales; comps rose 5.6% for the third quarter.

(Figures in millions, except per-share data.)

Income Statement Highlights

Q3 2007

Q3 2006

Change

Sales

$13,698.3

$12,175.2

12.5%

Net Profit

$561.2

$469.2

19.6%

EPS

$0.56

$0.46

21.7%

Diluted Shares

1,003.4

1,017.9

(1.4%)

Get back to basics with the income statement.

Margin Checkup

Q3 2007

Q3 2006

Change*

Gross Margin

28.3%

27.5%

0.8

Operating Margin

6.4%

6.1%

0.3

Net Margin

4.1%

3.9%

0.3

*Expressed in percentage points.

Margins are the earnings engine.

Balance Sheet Highlights

Assets

Q3 2007

Q3 2006

Change

Cash + ST Invest.

$758.1

$1,803.2

(58%)

Accounts Rec.

$2,003.6

$2,041.5

(1.9%)

Inventory

$6,455.7

$5,543.7

16.5%

Liabilities

Q3 2007

Q3 2006

Change

Accounts Payable

$3,709.0

$3,731.0

(0.6%)

The balance sheet reflects the company's health.

Cash Flow Highlights

YTD 2007

YTD 2006

Change

Cash From Ops.

$2,083.9

$2,293.0

(9.1%)

Capital Expenditures

$1,252.1

$907.2

38%

Free Cash Flow

$831.8

$1,385.8

(40%)

Free cash flow is a Fool's best friend.

Related Foolishness:

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