By Matt Grossman

Walgreens Boots Alliance Inc. Thursday posted stronger sales in the fiscal third quarter as the company's role in the roll out Covid-19 vaccinations coincided with improving pharmacy and retail sales.

The Deerfield, Ill.-based pharmacy company logged earnings of $1.38 a share in the three months to May 31, compared with a loss of $1.95 a share in the year-ago quarter. Net earnings attributable to the company were $1.2 billion, against a loss of $1.71 billion in 2020's fiscal third quarter.

Walgreens's adjusted earnings were also $1.38 a share. Analysts polled by FactSet were expecting an adjusted profit of $1.16 a share.

Sales climbed to $34.03 billion from $30.36 billion a year earlier. Analysts were forecasting revenue of $33.49 billion.

U.S. sales rose 6.4% year over year on a comparable basis, including an 8.4% increase in comparable pharmacy sales and a 1.7% increase in comparable retail sales. Vaccination contributed six percentage points to an overall 9.8% increase in prescriptions filled, the company said.

International sales rose by more than 75% in absolute terms due in part to a new wholesale joint venture in Germany. Excluding that effort, international sales rose 12% on a constant-currency basis amid the recovery from the Covid-19 pandemic in the U.K.

Walgreens said it has now administered more than 25 million Covid-19 vaccines.

Write to Matt Grossman at matt.grossman@wsj.com

(END) Dow Jones Newswires

07-01-21 0736ET