THE DEAL: Drugstore operator Walgreen Co. said Tuesday that it will pay $6.7 billion in cash and stock to buy a 45 percent stake in European health and beauty retailer Alliance Boots. It also has an option to buy the rest of the company in about three years.
THE AIM: The Deerfield, Ill., company says the deal will give it access to some stable European markets and emerging markets like China.
ALSO IN THE NEWS: Walgreen said its fiscal third-quarter earnings dropped 11 percent to $537 million, or 62 cents per share, as revenue slipped 3 percent to $17.75 billion.
