Walgreen Same-Store Sales Up 5.3% In Sept Amid Flu Shots

Walgreen Co.'s (WAG) same-store sales jumped 5.3% in September on strength both in the pharmacy and the front end of the store.

The 2% increase for non-pharmacy sales is in contrast to little, if any, growth reported recently by Walgreen and its main rivals, CVS Caremark Corp. (CVS) and Rite Aid Inc. (RAD). Such same-store sales fell 1.4% in the latest quarter for Walgreen, it reported Tuesday.

Pharmacy same-store sales climbed 7% in September despite a 2.3 percentage-point reduction from new generic drugs introduced the past year. Prescriptions filled jumped 12%, nearly half the result of increased dispensing of flu shots.

Total sales rose 10% to $5.35 billion in September, a month that Walgreen opened 48 stores. The count is 7,045, the nation's highest among drug-store operators.

The company has been struggling to bounce back from a recent trend of retail weakness. Earlier this week, Walgreen posted a 1.6% drop in fiscal fourth-quarter profit as sluggish front-end sales offset growth in revenue and prescription sales. But cash flow from operations surged 55% amid lower inventories, sparking a 10% jump in Walgreen's stock Tuesday.

-By Mike Barris, Dow Jones Newswires; 212-416-2330; [e-mail]