Private equity firm to buy Walgreens for $10B, report says

A private equity firm is set to close a $10 billion Walgreens buyout, people familiar with the deal told the Wall Street Journal. 

According to the report, the deal could be finalized before the end of the week, with terms involving Sycamore Partners taking ownership of the struggling pharmacy chain. Sycamore Partners is a New York-based firm whose portfolio includes Staples, Belk and Hot Topic.

Talks surrounding the pending buyout were first revealed in December 2024. 

The details being ironed out involve Sycamore Partners paying between $11.30 and $11.40 per share for Walgreens, which would then become a private company. Sources told the Wall Street Journal that the plan is for the newly formed pharmacy chain to maintain its U.S. retail business, with other parts to be sold or possibly spun off into a publicly traded corporation.

Walgreens has been around for more than 120 years, with shares available on public markets since 1927. On news of the upcoming transaction, its stock rose nearly 6% on Tuesday and was last priced at $10.84 a share.

For more, read the full exclusive from the Wall Street Journal at the link below.

Chad Van Alstin Health Imaging Health Exec

Chad is an award-winning writer and editor with over 15 years of experience working in media. He has a decade-long professional background in healthcare, working as a writer and in public relations.

Around the web

The company has agreed to acquire Verve Therapeutics for an upfront payment of approximately $1 billion. The total could increase significantly, however, if certain milestones are met. One of Verve's biggest gene therapies has already received the FDA's fast track designation.

American College of Cardiology Board of Governors Chair David E. Winchester, MD, MS, examines the many benefits of working with the American Medical Association House of Delegates to bring about significant change.

“Without a more concrete and stable policy on these tariffs from the current American administration, it is likely that most manufacturers will be forced to continuously change their internal forecasts and production plans," one analyst said.