Walgreens beats earnings expectations, revenues whiff (WBA)

Walgreens reported second-quarter earnings that were better than expected on Tuesday, helped by cost reductions.

The retailer said it earned $1.31 in adjusted earnings per share, topping the forecast for $1.28 according to Bloomberg.

Its revenues for the period totaled $30.2 billion, below the estimate for $30.7 billion.

Its shares were little changed in premarket trading. They're also flat for the last 12 months.

"We continued to make good progress in the quarter in reducing costs and establishing more efficient working practices, which contributed to overall adjusted earnings growth," CEO Stefano Pessina said in the release.

The company said its acquisition of Rite Aid announced last October is expected to close in the second half of this year.

It raised the low end of its guidance for fiscal 2016 adjusted net earnings by five cents per share, to a range of $4.35 to $4.55.

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