UPDATE: Citigroup Reiterates Sell Rating, Lowers PT for Walgreen

In a company update published earlier today, Citigroup Inc. reiterated its Sell rating for Walgreen Co. (NYSE: WAG), but lowered its price target from $29.00 to $27.00.

Citigroup went on to say “WAG announced a 45% equity stake in Alliance Boots, a global drug retailer with over 3,330 stores in 11 countries. The transaction is expected to be accretive to EPS by $0.23 to $0.27 in its first year. WAG will invest approx. $6.7B in cash and stock in exchange for the stake, with the option to acquire the remaining 55% in approx. three years. Expected pro-forma revenue is approx. $130B by 2016. While the transaction creates some global opportunities, we believe it does not resolve WAG's issues in the U.S.”

Walgreen Co. closed yesterday at $30.09.