- via Bertha Coombs at CNBC
- Speaking on the earnings call, Walgreens (WBA -8.1%) management notes initially strong growth in a number of categories in early-mid March, but a more-recent drop-off in spending on discretionary items like beauty, and a fall in foot traffic (this morning's results were for the quarter ended on Feb. 29).
- In the U.K., for instance, sales are down 65% over the last 10 days as it appears folks pulled forward scripts and got larger quantities than needed.
- CEO Stefano Pessina: For pharmacy, people are trying to use whatever they have at home, and going to the store only if necessary. If the lockdown only goes on for another month, he expects customers to return to old habits. If things take longer, all bets are off.
- CVS (CVS -6.6%), Rite-Aid (RAD -15.9%)