Pharmacy chain Walgreens plans to close a “substantial” number of its stores in an attempt to turn around its operations and ease financial struggles that have hampered the company in recent years.
In a recent interview with The Wall Street Journal, Walgreens Boots Alliance CEO Tim Wentworth said that the company is currently in the process of reviewing its unprofitable locations. These locations make up roughly one-quarter of Walgreens’ 8,600 stores in the United States, and a significant number of them is set to be closed, with the exact number yet to be determined.
Walgreens will make other moves to improve its situation and cut costs, including selling its majority stake in the primary-care provider VillageMD.
“We recognize where we are is a turnaround,” Wentworth told The Wall Street Journal. “We recognize that we need to be focused on what are the parts of the business that we believe are contributing and have a future, and some of those need to change.”
Wentworth added that their plan would not affect its workforce, as the company plans to reassign staffers from closed stores to other locations or positions.
Additionally, Walgreens lowered its forecast for the fiscal year ending August and now expects adjusted earnings of $2.80 to $2.95 per share compared to adjusted earnings of $3.20 to $3.35 per share it predicted in March.