Walgreens had July sales of $6.03 billion, an increase of 8.0 percent from $5.59 billion for the same month in fiscal 2012.
Total front-end sales increased 3.6 percent compared with the same month in fiscal 2012, while comparable store front-end sales increased 2.3 percent. Customer traffic in comparable stores decreased 1.2 percent while basket size increased 3.5 percent.
Prescriptions filled at comparable stores increased by 9.5 percent in July and increased 7.3 percent on a calendar day-shift adjusted basis. This year’s July had one additional Wednesday and one fewer Sunday compared with July 2012. These calendar shifts positively impacted prescriptions filled at comparable stores by 2.2 percentage points.
The company said the percentage of Express Scripts prescriptions returning to its pharmacies continued to increase in July.
July pharmacy sales increased by 9.9 percent, while comparable store pharmacy sales increased 8.8 percent and increased by a calendar day-shift adjusted 6.6 percent. Calendar day shifts positively impacted pharmacy sales in comparable stores by 2.2 percentage points. Calendar day-shift adjusted comparable store pharmacy sales were negatively impacted by 2.8 percentage points due to generic drug introductions in the last 12 months. Pharmacy sales accounted for 64.6 percent of total sales for the month.
Sales in comparable stores increased by 6.3 percent in July. Calendar day shifts positively impacted total comparable sales by 1.4 percentage points, while generic drug introductions in the last 12 months negatively impacted total comparable sales by 1.8 percentage points.
Registrations for Walgreens Balance ® Rewards loyalty program, which launched in September 2012, totaled 79 million through July.
Calendar 2013 sales to date were $42.02 billion, an increase of 3.4 percent from $40.64 billion in 2012.
Fiscal 2013 year-to-date sales for the first 11 months were $66.05 billion, up 0.4 percent from $65.79 billion in the comparable period in fiscal 2012.
Walgreens opened nine stores during July, including one relocation, and closed one.
On July 31, Walgreens operated 8,571 locations in all 50 states, the District of Columbia, Puerto Rico and Guam. That includes 8,105 drugstores, 184 more than a year ago, including 67 net stores acquired over the last 12 months. The company also operates infusion and respiratory services facilities, specialty pharmacies and mail service facilities. Its Take Care Health Systems subsidiary manages more than 700 in-store convenient care clinics and worksite health and wellness centers.
