Why it issues: A messy shift from pharmacy to healthcare.
Walgreens has pivoted away from pharmacy and retail to focus extra on healthcare providers, with blended outcomes. The corporate’s shares continued to fall on Friday, falling to close their lowest stage in 14 years. The corporate mentioned its revenue this 12 months might be “at or close to the low finish” of its forecasts.
“The group, which beforehand grew by numerous pharmacy acquisitions, now needs to consolidate and focus its efforts on the U.S. healthcare sector,” Neil Saunders, managing director of GlobalData, mentioned in an electronic mail. “Whereas one can argue in regards to the deserves of this transfer, well being care is just not Ms. Brewer’s robust swimsuit.”
Earlier than becoming a member of Walgreens, Ms. Brewer was chief working officer of Starbucks and beforehand served as chief government of Sam’s Membership, a division of Walmart.
Along with opening extra physician’s workplaces in Walgreens shops, she additionally oversaw the sophisticated rollout of the Covid-19 vaccine in pharmacies and the enforcement of pandemic security requirements within the shops.
In an announcement, Ms. Brewer mentioned she was happy with what she had achieved and that the corporate was “on its path to changing into a number one consumer-focused healthcare firm.”
Quotable: “The worst time” for an government to depart.
Ms. Brewer’s exit was introduced simply over a month after the corporate’s chief monetary officer, James Kehoe, left to develop into chief monetary officer at expertise firm FIS.
As Walgreens focuses extra on its healthcare enterprise, the corporate faces a number of hurdles, in line with trade specialists. In a observe to purchasers, Deutsche Financial institution analysts mentioned challenges included managing difficult pharmacy reimbursements, shifting the enterprise mannequin to major care and coping with opioid legal responsibility points.
“The departure of the 2 key managers comes at maybe the worst attainable time,” Deutsche Financial institution analysts wrote. “In our reporting, we can’t recall a time when each the CEO and CFO left a big firm in such a brief time period with out there being different points on the firm.”
What’s subsequent: The seek for a everlasting successor.
Walgreens mentioned a seek for a everlasting chief is underway.
Stefano Pessina, the corporate’s chief government, mentioned in an announcement that Ms. Graham was the “very best particular person for the place of interim CEO.” Ms. Graham was beforehand CEO of Amylin Prescription drugs and Chairwoman of Guidant. She started her profession at Eli Lilly.
It’s uncommon for a girl to interchange one other CEO. This 12 months, gender variety on the prime ranks of retail corporations has declined. In accordance with Heidrick & Struggles, an government search agency, 13 of the 86 retail corporations within the Fortune 1000 had a lady as CEO as of July, a slight decline from a 12 months in the past.
There are 50 feminine CEOs within the Fortune 500, in line with knowledge from Catalyst, which works with a whole bunch of corporations to advance girls’s careers.
After Ms. Brewer’s departure, just one black girl is left to run a Fortune 500 firm: Thasunda Duckett TIAA, the funding agency.