Walgreens Boots Alliance Inc (NASDAQ:WBA) stock rose 0.74% (As on March 29, 11:21:05 AM UTC-4, Source: Google Finance) after the company  does not plan to increase wages further, as a shortage of pharmacists eases after the company doubled down on hiring and pay raises last year. Walgreens has also lost market share to its rivals after closing several stores during the pandemic, and is aiming to regain it by the end of fiscal year 2023 by reducing pay gap and increasing automation at fulfillment centers. Adjusted operating income was $1.2 billion, a decrease of 25.4 percent on a constant currency basis, reflecting lower volumes of COVID-19 vaccinations and testing lapping the year-ago period’s Omicron surge, planned payroll investments in U.S. Retail Pharmacy, and investments in U.S. Healthcare, partly offset by improved retail contributions in the U.S., and International growth. Net earnings in the second quarter were $703 million compared to $883 million in the year-ago quarter. This decrease is driven by lower operating income partially offset by a $454 million after-tax gain from the partial sale of the Company’s equity method investment in AmerisourceBergen. Net cash provided by operating activities was $745 million in the second quarter. Free cash flow was $677 million, a $7 million increase compared with the year-ago quarter.

WBA in the second quarter of FY 23 has reported the adjusted earnings per share of $1.16, beating the analysts’ estimates for the adjusted earnings per share of  $1.10, according to Refinitiv data. The company had reported the adjusted revenue growth of 3.3 percent to $27.6 billion in the second quarter of FY 23, beating the analysts’ estimates for revenue of $26.8 billion. As higher prescription drug prices helped soften the blow from declining COVID-19 vaccinations. Same-store pharmacy sales rose 4.9%. Walgreens, one of the largest U.S. pharmacies, has been looking to expand beyond its core business, with acquisitions of healthcare service operators VillageMD and urgent care provider Summit Health. The health segment saw a sharp increase in revenue to $1.6 billion, driven by the deals.

Moreover, the International segment had second quarter sales of $5.7 billion, an increase of 1.6 percent from the year-ago quarter, held back by an adverse currency impact of 7.5 percentage points. The U.S. Retail Pharmacy segment had second quarter sales of $27.6 billion, a decrease of 0.3 percent from the year-ago quarter.