WALGREENS’ CEO is eyeing a huge turnaround for the company that involves a massive $10 billion deal.
The pharmacy chain has recently been thrown into turmoil as it announced plans to shut 500 stores this year.
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The US Sun previously reported on Walgreens’ plans to close 450 locations as it faces financial difficulties.
But Walgreens has been in months-long talks to save itself, and will now be taken private for the first time in its nearly 100-year history.
The $10 billion deal was signed on Thursday with private equity firm Sycamore, Walgreens CEO Tim Wentworth confirmed in a statement.
He said: “While we are making progress against our ambitious turnaround strategy, meaningful value creation will take time, focus and change that is better managed as a private company.
“Sycamore will provide us with the expertise and experience of a partner with a strong track record of successful retail turnarounds.”
The managing director of Sycamore, Stefan Kaluzny, added that the firm has confidence in Walgreens‘ “pharmacy-led model and essential role in driving better outcomes for patients, customers and communities.”
Hours after the deal was confirmed, shares of Walgreens jumped more than 5%.
As of Thursday morning, shares of the company were up more than 15% for 2025.
Walgreens said the total value of the transaction would be up to $23.7 billion when including debt and possible payouts in the future.
This means that Walgreens will be taken private, with all of the details expected to be finalized in the fourth quarter of 2025.
This is a landmark moment in Walgreens’ near 120 year public history, as it would be the first time the company is off public markets.
Walgreens shares have been public since 1927.
The chain has been facing financial pressure in recent years, as it scaled back its healthcare operation to focus on the retail side of the company.
This stands to completely change the fortunes of Walgreens after years of market value struggle.
Their shares have been on a downward spiral for nearly a decade.
US braces for ‘45,000 store closures’
Some 45,000 bricks-and-mortar stores could close in the next five years, experts have warned.
Several major retailers have announced store closures or gone out of business altogether in recent years.
In 2023, chains such as Foot Locker announced plans to close up to 400 outlets by 2026.
While, other well-known retailers like Tuesday Morning and Mitchell Gold + Bob Williams filed for bankruptcy in 2023.
Bed Bath & Beyond has closed all of its brick-and-mortar stores and is now an online-only retailer.
The most affected retailers have been clothing, consumer electronics, sporting goods, hobby, book, music, and home furnishing stores since the start of 2019.
UBS has predicted the total number of retail stores will drop by 45k from 958k to 913k.
Despite that, the report says that certain stores should thrive while others decline.
It said retailers such as Walmart, Costco, Home Depot, and Target, could be among the winners.
From 2015 to 2024, Walgreens‘ market value has gone from more than $100 billion to under $8 billion.
Walgreens has felt long-running squeeze on margins in its core prescription business.
The business decided to double down despite the losses, while at the same time, its rival CVS diversified into insurance and pharmacy benefits.
More trouble hit Walgreens in late January after they were sued by the Justice Department.
It was alleged that it contributed to the opioid crisis by inappropriately dispensing millions of pills.
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