Walgreens April sales up 3.4%

Deerfield, Ill. -- Walgreens said its same-store sales rose 3.4% in April. But analysts surveyed by Thomson Reuters expected, on average, that revenue at those stores had risen 3.6%. Walgreen said pharmacy comp-store sales were up 1.8%, below analysts' estimate of 2.4%. The company said the results were hurt by 1.9 percentage points because of a calendar shift and the move of the allergy drug Allegra from prescription to over-the-counter status. Sales of nonpharmacy items jumped 6.5% benefiting from this year's late Easter, the company said. Analysts expected a 5.9% rise.