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Rite Aid (RAD) Q1 Loss Narrower Than Expected, Revenues Beat

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Shares of Rite Aid Corporation jumped more than 2% following the first-quarter fiscal 2024 results, wherein the top and bottom lines beat the Zacks Consensus Estimate. However, the metrics declined year over year.

Results have gained from strong script growth, solid pharmacy margins and progress in its turnaround program. On the flip side, the underperformance in front-end sales in the Retail Pharmacy Segment and a higher-than-expected medical loss ratio at Elixir Insurance acted as deterrents.

Shares of this Zacks Rank #4 (Sell) company have plunged 29.6% in the past three months compared with the industry's decline of 11.8%.

 

Zacks Investment Research
Image Source: Zacks Investment Research

 

Q1 Highlights

Rite Aid incurred an adjusted loss of 73 cents per share, narrower than the Zacks Consensus Estimate of a loss of $1.49. However, the figure was wider than the prior-year quarter’s loss of 60 cents.

Revenues declined 6% from the year-ago quarter to $5,356.2 million but surpassed the Zacks Consensus Estimate of $5,352 million. This was mainly due to the reduction in the company’s Prescription Drug Plan membership and the loss of commercial clients at Elixir, partly offset by increased Retail Pharmacy segment revenues stemming from higher pharmacy sales.

In the fiscal first quarter, the Retail Pharmacy segment's revenues rose 3.4%, driven by an increase in acute and maintenance prescriptions, somewhat offset by reduced COVID-19 vaccine and testing revenues, and store closures.

Retail Pharmacy same-store sales moved up 8.4%, driven by a 13.3% rise in pharmacy sales, somewhat offset by a 4.4% decline in front-end same-store sales. Excluding cigarettes and tobacco products, front-end same-store sales fell 3.8% from the year-ago period’s reading.

Prescription count at same-store sales, adjusted to 30-day equivalent, rose 4.7% on the back of non-COVID-19 prescriptions (up 7.4%), acute prescriptions (up 6.8%) and maintenance prescriptions (up 7.6%). Prescription sales constituted 73.9% of overall drugstore sales. The total store count at the end of the reported quarter was 2,284.

In the Pharmacy Services segment, revenues declined 31% due to the client loss announced earlier and reduced Elixir Insurance membership, partly offset by increased utilization and a rise in drug costs.

In the reported quarter, adjusted EBITDA fell 18% from the year-ago period to $21.7 million. The adjusted EBITDA margin expanded 30 basis points to 1.8% in the quarter under review.

SG&A expenses increased 3.1% from the year-ago period to $1,255.2 million.

Financial Status

Rite Aid ended the reported quarter with cash and cash equivalents of $135.5 million, long-term debt (net of current maturities) of $3,328 million, and a total shareholders' equity deficit of $947.4 million. For fiscal 2024, capital expenditure is anticipated to be $175 million.

Rite Aid Corporation Price, Consensus and EPS Surprise

 

Rite Aid Corporation Price, Consensus and EPS Surprise

Rite Aid Corporation price-consensus-eps-surprise-chart | Rite Aid Corporation Quote

FY24 Outlook

Managememnt expects revenues of $22.6-$23.0 billion for fiscal 2024. The Retail Pharmacy segment’s revenues are anticipated to be $18-$18.3 billion, whereas the Pharmacy Services segment’s revenues are predicted to be $4.6-$4.7 billion

Adjusted EBITDA is envisioned to be $330-$360 million. The Pharmacy Services segment’s Adjusted EBITDA is forecast to be $90-$100 million due to rising drug costs and a higher medical loss ratio at Elixir Insurance. The Retail Pharmacy segment’s Adjusted EBITDA is unchanged at $240-$260 million. The adjusted loss is expected to be $4.29-$4.78.

Stocks to Consider

Some better-ranked stocks are Tecnoglass (TGLS - Free Report) , Walmart (WMT - Free Report) and TJX Companies (TJX - Free Report) .

Tecnoglass manufactures and sells architectural glass and aluminum products for the residential and commercial construction industries. TGLS currently sports a Zacks Rank #1 (Strong Buy). You can see the complete list of today’s Zacks #1 Rank stocks here.

The Zacks Consensus Estimate for Tecnoglass’ current financial-year sales and earnings per share suggests growth of 18.1% and 23.8%, respectively, from the year-ago reported figures. TGLS has a trailing four-quarter earnings surprise of 22.7%,
on average.

Walmart, which operates a chain of hypermarkets, discount department stores and grocery stores, currently carries a Zacks Rank #2 (Buy). The expected EPS growth rate for three to five years is 5.5%.

The Zacks Consensus Estimate for Walmart’s current financial-year sales suggests growth of 4.2% from the year-ago period. WMT has a trailing four-quarter earnings surprise of 12%, on average.

TJX Companies, which operates as an off-price apparel and home fashion retailer, carries a Zacks Rank #2 at present. The expected EPS growth rate for three to five years is 10.5%.

The Zacks Consensus Estimate for TJX Companies’ current financial-year sales and earnings suggests growth of 6.4% and 14.5%, respectively, from the year-ago period. TJX has a trailing four-quarter earnings surprise of 4.4%, on average.


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