Walgreen Company (NYSE:WAG) announced today its acquisition of 144 new drug stores from USA Drug Chain for $438 million. The majority of the stores are located in the southern states, and owned by Stephen L. LaFrance. Holdings Inc.
According to the press statement released by Walgreens, it will buy the stock of the Stephen L. LaFrance Holdings Inc. Some of the brands included in the transaction are Super D Drug and May’s Drug. Walgreen also acquired the corporate office and distribution center of the USA Drug chain.
The company also states in the same press release, that the USA Drug chain reported $825 million sales last year. Furthermore, Walgreen expects that the transaction will not impose any significant impact on its earnings per share for the current fiscal year. Both companies expect to finalize their agreement by September.
Commenting on the deal, Brian Sozzi, an independent analyst in New York said that Walgreen is trying to dominate the pharmaceutical industry. He also questioned the company’s workforce and its ability to combine its newly acquired businesses as soon as possible. Last month, Walgreen also acquired 45% interest in Alliance Boots GmbH for $6.7 billion expand its business internationally. Walgreen is the largest drugstore chain in the United States. It has approximately 7,890 drugstoresl, located all over the country.
