NEW YORK (TheStreet) -- Shares of Walgreens Boost Alliance Inc. are gaining by 2.78% to $90.12 in pre-market trading on Thursday morning, after the health and wellness drug store retailer reported earnings for the fiscal 2015 second quarter that topped analysts' expectations. Walgreen's said its adjusted earnings for the most recent quarter were $1.18 per share, compared to the 95 cents per share analysts had forecast. Second quarter sales grew by 35.5% to $26.6 billion for the 2015 second quarter, however analysts' had anticipated revenue of $27.77 billion for the quarter. "This quarter marked a solid start for our new company, and I remain as optimistic as ever about our long-term future. At the same time, we understand the work that is needed to proactively address headwinds such as reimbursement pressure and competition. Our work includes several key areas of focus to create value," Walgreens Boots Alliance acting CEO Stefano Pessina said in a statement. Walgreens also noted that it will close 200 domestic stores as part of its restructuring program. The company announced a three year, $1 billion cost reduction initiative in August. "After a rigorous analysis, the company has identified additional opportunities for cost savings, primarily in its Retail Pharmacy USA division. These additional opportunities will increase the total expected cost savings program by $500 million to a projected $1.5 billion by the end of fiscal 2017," Walgreens added. Separately, TheStreet Ratings team rates WALGREENS BOOTS ALLIANCE INC as a Buy with a ratings score of A-. TheStreet Ratings Team has this to say about their recommendation: "We rate WALGREENS BOOTS ALLIANCE INC (WBA) a BUY. This is based on the convergence of positive investment measures, which should help this stock outperform the majority of stocks that we rate. The company's strengths can be seen in multiple areas, such as its revenue growth, increase in net income, good cash flow from operations, largely solid financial position with reasonable debt levels by most measures and solid stock price performance. We feel these strengths outweigh the fact that the company has had somewhat disappointing return on equity." You can view the full analysis from the report here: WBA Ratings Report WBA data by YCharts Must Read: Warren Buffett's Top 25 Stocks for 2015
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