By Tess Stynes Walgreen Co.'s (WAG) same-store sales fell a slightly bigger-than-expected 5.8% during May--marking a fifth straight month of declines--as the drug-store chain's loss of Express Scripts Holding Co.'s (ESRX) members continued to take a toll. Analysts polled by Thomson Reuters recently expected a decline of 5.2%. During May, Walgreen's same-pharmacy sales dropped 8.5%, slightly less than the 9% drop analysts had feared. A calendar shift positively affected pharmacy sales by 1.3 percentage points. However, prescriptions filled were down 7.6% on the loss of Express Scripts members, which contributed 10.6 percentage points to the decline. Still, Chief Financial Officer Wade Miquelon said Walgreen's underlying trend for the number of prescriptions has improved and Walgreen expects the numbers will be helped as employers and health plans take steps to provide continued access to its pharmacies. Walgreen on Monday said it will continue to provide pharmacy services to members of UnitedHealth Group Inc.'s (UNH) OptumRx drug-benefit plans under a multi-year agreement. The contract extension came as Walgreen has posted weaker sales since it failed to renew its contract with Express Scripts late last year, resulting in some customer filling prescriptions elsewhere. In the front of the store, same-store sales fell 1%, missing analysts forecasts for 1.3% growth. A customer traffic decline of 2.3% offset a 1.3% growth in average basket size. Total sales fell 1.6% to $5.98 billion last month. Walgreen in March reported that its fiscal second-quarter earnings fell 7.7% amid its exit from Express Scripts' network and a mild cold and flu season. Shares closed Monday at $30.51. Write to Tess Stynes at Tess.Stynes@dowjones.com
