WALGREENS

DEERFIELD, Ill. — The board of directors of Walgreens on Wednesday increased the quarterly dividend 28.6% — the largest quarterly dividend increase in the company's 110-year history — to 22.5 cents per share from the previous rate of 17.5 cents per share.

CHICAGO — Walgreens has acquired the 10-site retail pharmacy chain Carle Foundation, a pharmacy operator out of the Urbana-Champaign, Ill., area with the majority of stores located inside medical office buildings, according to Dresner Partners, which brokered the deal.

WHAT IT MEANS AND WHY IT'S IMPORTANT — Walk through Duane Reade’s new flagship store at 40 Wall St., and it is clear to see why this 22,000-sq.-ft. location is important.

(THE NEWS: Duane Reade's new flagship is glimpse of drug store of the future. For the full story, click here.) 

WHAT IT MEANS AND WHY IT'S IMPORTANT — Fitness and nutrition programs have been core parts of employer-based wellness programs before, including the ones Take Care operates for such employers as Harrah's Casinos. But, by taking an ownership position in the company that provides the fitness offering, Walgreens/Take Care has the opportunity to look for creative ways to bring new wellness-type programs to its stores through its retail clinics, perhaps even as part of a larger weight-loss management program.

DEERFIELD, Ill. — Walgreens on Friday announced the expansion of its fresh food selection at its location at Third Street and Williams Avenue in San Francisco's Bayview community, a neighborhood identified as a food desert. The drug store now offers a larger assortment of fresh fruits, vegetables, whole grains, beans, lean protein and other healthy meal components.

DEERFIELD, Ill. — Walgreens recently surpassed 1 million fans on Facebook, the pharmacy operator announced Friday, and also has integrated its network of more than 7,700 drug stores through mobile platforms on Facebook Places and Foursquare.

Consequently, Walgreens quickly has become the chain drug store retailer with the largest following on Foursquare, while developing a growing presence on other social communities, including Twitter and YouTube.

NEW YORK — In an exclusive video store tour, Walgreens' president of daily living products and solutions Joe Magnacca walked Drug Store News editor Rob Eder and the DSN.TV cameras through the new Duane Reade flagship store at 40 Wall St.

DEERFIELD, Ill. — Walgreens’ stock was trading up 30 cents to $43.03 on the New York Stock Exchange mid-morning on Wednesday thanks to favorable same-store sales growth of 4.8% for the month of June versus an analyst consensus estimate of 2.8%.