The last time I wrote about Walgreens (WAG), I was long Medco (MHS), which ExpressScripts (ESRX) was preparing to acquire. The news then was that Walgreens would lose any pharmacy benefit tied to the ExpressScripts Pharmacy Benefit Management (PBM) plans in January, and likely all of Medco's business soon afterward. I have since closed out my MHS position at a profit, but it may be time to consider an outright short on WAG. The business is rapidly losing its "moat," according to Morningstar. Sales were down 2.6% for January, same-store sales down 4.6%, as the pain of the ESRX cancellation started to kick in. These losses are keeping Walgreens from executing on its other plans, like expanding its network of Take Care Clinics, which are ... Continue reading →
NEW YORK (TheStreet) -- If Walgreen(WAG) and Express Scripts(ESRX) don't start working together again both companies could be hurt, but Walgreen potentially has more on the line, according to Gabelli analyst Jeff Jonas. Express Scripts, a pharmacy benefit manager, stopped covering in-network prescriptions filled at Walgreen at the start of the year. Walgreen said Express Scripts wanted to cut reimbursement rates to below-industry-average cost levels and wanted to unilaterally define its contract terms. "Under the terms proposed by Express Scripts, it would not make good business sense for the strategic direction of our company to continue our relationship with them," CEO Greg Wasson said in a statement last June. "Walgreens is committed to providing quality, convenient and cost-effective pharmacy services to our patients, but we ... Continue reading →
Last week, the New York Times published an article detailing some of the troublesome working conditions in Chinese factories that makes Apple (AAPL) products:[T]he workers assembling iPhones, iPads and other devices often labor in harsh conditions, according to employees inside those plants, worker advocates and documents published by companies themselves. Problems are as varied as onerous work environments and serious — sometimes deadly — safety problems.Employees work excessive overtime, in some cases seven days a week, and live in crowded dorms. Some say they stand so long that their legs swell until they can hardly walk. Under-age workers have helped build Apple’s products, and the company’s suppliers have improperly disposed of hazardous waste and falsified records, according to company reports and advocacy groups that, within ... Continue reading →
Komen for the Cure just released the following statement from Nancy Brinker and the Susan G. Komen Board of Directors: We want to apologize to the American public for recent decisions that cast doubt upon our commitment to our mission of saving women's lives. The events of this week have been deeply unsettling for our supporters, partners and friends and all of us at Susan G. Komen. We have been distressed at the presumption that the changes made to our funding criteria were done for political reasons or to specifically penalize Planned Parenthood. They were not. Our original desire was to fulfill our fiduciary duty to our donors by not funding grant applications made by organizations under investigation. We will amend the criteria to make ... Continue reading →
Shares in Viacom (VIA) cracked early today, then recovered to a gain, after it reported lower profits on slightly lower ad revenues and the settlement of a court case. But underneath all that is a stench of death. No one is facing it, which could spell opportunity. I am not just talking about Sumner Redstone, now 88, Viacom's controlling shareholder. My mom's 88, turns 89 this summer, and people can live and function well a long time. But Redstone's daughter is 57, his son 60, the family's been squabbling for years and, more to the point, his operating man, Philippe Dauman, 58, has been missing some tricks lately. What kind of tricks? Try the whole digital revolution. Do I have to mention how threatened cable ... Continue reading →
Shares in Viacom (VIA) cracked early today, then recovered to a gain, after it reported lower profits on slightly lower ad revenues and the settlement of a court case. But underneath all that is a stench of death. No one is facing it, which could spell opportunity. I am not just talking about Sumner Redstone, now 88, Viacom's controlling shareholder. My mom's 88, turns 89 this summer, and people can live and function well a long time. But Redstone's daughter is 57, his son 60, the family's been squabbling for years and, more to the point, his operating man, Philippe Dauman, 58, has been missing some tricks lately. What kind of tricks? Try the whole digital revolution. Do I have to mention how threatened cable ... Continue reading →
