Walgreens loses $1.7B in virus-plagued quarter

The coronavirus pandemic pushed Walgreens to a $1.7 billion loss in the most recent quarter with customers staying home or limiting shopping to essential supplies from grocery stores.

The drugstore chain said the rapidly spreading virus took a bite of between $700 million and $750 million from sales, with much of the damage coming from outside the U.S.

More companies of all sizes will begin releasing details about their financial performances over the past three months as COVID-19 seized economies in Europe, as well as North and South America.

Walgreens Boots Alliance Inc., based in Deerfield, Illinois, runs more than 9,200 stores in the U.S. and has more than 18,750 locations internationally.