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Walmart settles for $50M over pharmacies filling invalid prescriptions: DOJ

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Walmart settles for $50M over pharmacies filling invalid prescriptions: DOJ

Walmart has agreed to pay a $50 million settlement over allegations its pharmacies were illegally filling thousands of prescriptions for opioids and other controlled substances, according to the Department of Justice (DOJ) and Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA).

The government complaint, first filed at the end of President Donald Trump’s first term and amended during former President Joe Biden’s term, accused Walmart of violating the Controlled Substances Act.

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“Today’s settlement proves this department is committed to putting Americans’ flourishing first,” Associate Attorney General Stanley Woodward said in a statement. “Congress enacted laws to promote responsibility and accountability for companies who dispense controlled substances to protect Americans. 

“This department will never shy away from vigorously enforcing pharmacies’ obligations to comply with those protections, ensuring that potential profits never justify aiding our nation’s opioid epidemic.”

AS A US ATTORNEY, I SEE FENTANYL’S HORRIFYING TOLL UP CLOSE; CONGRESS MUST ACT NOW

Walmart pharmacy

Walmart has agreed to pay a $50 million settlement over allegations its pharmacies were illegally filling thousands of prescriptions for opioids and other controlled substances, according to th DOJ and DEA. (Bob Riha, Jr./Getty Images, File / Getty Images)

The complaint alleged that Walmart had been filling invalid prescriptions with the knowledge of pharmacists and its compliance team since June 2013.

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Some Walmart pharmacists reported the alleged illegal activity to Walmart’s corporate compliance team, including through thousands of “refusal-to-fill” forms, the DOJ said.

“The compliance team, however, prioritized other goals over CSA compliance,” the DOJ said. 

“As one director on the compliance team acknowledged in an email, rather than analyzing the refusal-to-fill reports, the compliance team viewed ‘[d]riving sales and patient awareness,’ as ‘a far better use of our Market Directors and Market manger’s time.’”

WALMART MAKES CHANGES TO HOW MILLIONS OF CUSTOMERS CAN PAY AT CHECKOUT

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Oxycodone tablets

Tablets of the opioid painkiller Oxycodone. (Eric Baradat/AFP via Getty Images, File / Getty Images)

Pharmacists also allegedly knowingly filled invalid prescriptions from “pill mill” prescribers or prescriptions that had red flags, such as dangerous opioid and nonopioid “cocktails,” repeated early fill requests of frequently abused drugs or high-dosages of opioids, according to the DOJ.

Ticker Security Last Change Change %
WMT WALMART INC. 103.09 +0.46 +0.45%

As part of the settlement, the DOJ said Walmart had entered into an agreement to establish a hotline for employees and patients to report suspected illegal activity.

The outside of a walmart store

Some Walmart pharmacists reported the alleged illegal activity to the retail giant’s corporate compliance team. (iStock / iStock)

The company must also proactively monitor pharmacy dispensing patterns.

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Walmart did not immediately respond to FOX Business’ request for comment. 

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Onto Innovation Stock: AI’s Next Bottleneck Is Yield (NYSE:ONTO)

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Onto Innovation Stock: AI’s Next Bottleneck Is Yield (NYSE:ONTO)

This article was written by

“AWS Certified AI Practitioner Early Adopter”I am a DevOps Engineer for a major, wholly owned subsidiary of a large-cap Fortune 500. I have been the primary driver of Anthropic-based tooling in our company’s division, and have successfully pushed for the division-wide integration of tools like Claude Code via AWS Bedrock. I am currently spearheading the implementation of AI-infrastructure in our division.I am a true subject-matter expert on the actual buildout, deployment, and maintenance of AI tools and applications. I have increasingly deep knowledge on the science behind generative AI systems as a result of first-hand experience with machine learning algorithms, model training, and model deployment.I contribute to Seeking Alpha as an outlet to share my AI and machine learning insights through an investment-focused lens.Closely associated with LL InsightsPer TipRanks (6/26/25) – 2 Year Timeframe#716 out of 31,463 Financial Bloggers #1,222 out of 41,143 experts

Analyst’s Disclosure: I/we have no stock, option or similar derivative position in any of the companies mentioned, and no plans to initiate any such positions within the next 72 hours. I wrote this article myself, and it expresses my own opinions. I am not receiving compensation for it (other than from Seeking Alpha). I have no business relationship with any company whose stock is mentioned in this article.

Seeking Alpha’s Disclosure: Past performance is no guarantee of future results. No recommendation or advice is being given as to whether any investment is suitable for a particular investor. Any views or opinions expressed above may not reflect those of Seeking Alpha as a whole. Seeking Alpha is not a licensed securities dealer, broker or US investment adviser or investment bank. Our analysts are third party authors that include both professional investors and individual investors who may not be licensed or certified by any institute or regulatory body.

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HighPeak Energy Stock: Frontloaded CapEx Translate Into H2 26 FCF Generation (NASDAQ:HPK)

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Gulfport Energy Stock: Ramps Up Inventory Acquisition Activity (NYSE:GPOR)

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Aaron Chow, aka Elephant Analytics has 15+ years of analytical experience and is a top rated analyst on TipRanks. Aaron previously co-founded a mobile gaming company (Absolute Games) that was acquired by PENN Entertainment. He used his analytical and modeling skills to design the in-game economic models for two mobile apps with over 30 million in combined installs. He is the author of the investing group Distressed Value Investing, which focuses on both value opportunities and distressed plays, with a significant focus on the energy sector. Learn more>>

Analyst’s Disclosure: I/we have no stock, option or similar derivative position in any of the companies mentioned, and no plans to initiate any such positions within the next 72 hours. I wrote this article myself, and it expresses my own opinions. I am not receiving compensation for it (other than from Seeking Alpha). I have no business relationship with any company whose stock is mentioned in this article.

Seeking Alpha’s Disclosure: Past performance is no guarantee of future results. No recommendation or advice is being given as to whether any investment is suitable for a particular investor. Any views or opinions expressed above may not reflect those of Seeking Alpha as a whole. Seeking Alpha is not a licensed securities dealer, broker or US investment adviser or investment bank. Our analysts are third party authors that include both professional investors and individual investors who may not be licensed or certified by any institute or regulatory body.

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Apple TV hikes prices on streaming, Apple One bundle services

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Apple TV hikes prices on streaming, Apple One bundle services

Apple raised its streaming price for Apple TV on Friday, up from $12.99 to $14.99 per month or $119 a year when it used to cost $99.

Apple also raised the price of its Apple One service, which combines Apple TV, as well as other services such as iCloud storage, Apple Music and Apple Arcade.

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Apple One is now $21.95 for an individual plan, up from $19.95.

DISNEY SETTLEMENT COULD PAY YOUTUBE TV AND DIRECTV USERS

Cast of Ted Lasso

The cast of Apple TV’s “Ted Lasso” is seen this month.  ( Cindy Ord/Getty Images / Getty Images)

The tech giant last raised its streaming prices a year ago from $9.99 to $12.99.

Apple TV isn’t the only streaming service to go up. Peacock, Netflix, Amazon Prime, Hulu, Disney +, Paramount +, Max and YouTube Premium have all raised their prices in some form in the last few years — with some putting hikes on ad-free streaming.

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Ticker Security Last Change Change %
AAPL APPLE INC. 319.70 +5.12 +1.63%

Apple TV cost just $4.99 per month when it launched in 2019.

The streaming service includes favorites like “Ted Lasso,” “Your Friends and Neighbors,” “The Morning Show,” “Severance,” “Silo,” “Mark Matter,” plus it has the exclusive rights to the Charlie Brown specials and Formula 1 racing.

Jennifer Aniston from The Morning Show

Jennifer Aniston promoting “The Morning Show” in June.  (Monica Schipper/WireImage / Getty Images)

FIRST PREVIEW DROPS FOR ‘BROTHERS’ AS ‘TRUE DETECTIVE’ STARS REUNITE ON APPLE TV THIS SEPTEMBER

The price for Apple Music also went up in July from $10.99 to $11.99 per month.

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Apple reported a record June quarter with $109.4 billion in revenue, which beat analysts’ estimates of $108.65 billion in the company’s final earnings report before CEO Tim Cook steps down.

WASHINGTON POST FACES CLASS-ACTION LAWSUIT ALLEGING ‘SURVEILLANCE PRICING’ OF SUBSCRIBERS

iphones for sale

Apple iPhone 17 Pros are displayed during an Apple special event at Apple headquarters in September 2025 in Cupertino, Calif. (Justin Sullivan/Getty Images / Getty Images)

A 22% jump in iPhone sales, combined with record spring quarter Mac revenue, helped drive the results.

Tariff refunds also boosted Apple’s bottom line, adding roughly 5% to profit during the period.

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FOX Business has reached out to Apple for comment.

FOX Business’ Susan Li contributed to this report.

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OpenAI to end partnership with SpaceX’s Cursor

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OpenAI to end partnership with SpaceX’s Cursor

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Dividend Champion, Contender, And Challenger Highlights: Week August 30

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Dividend Champion, Contender, And Challenger Highlights: Week Of March 22

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Justin Law has a Ph.D in Chemistry from Rice University and has earned the CFA Institute Investment Foundations certificate. He applies his knowledge to deep value and dividend paying stocks.Justin is a contributor to the investing group The Dividend Kings where he curates the Dividend Champions list, a monthly publication of companies with a history of consistently increasing their dividends. The Dividend Kings is a group of analysts teaching individuals how to invest more wisely in dividend stocks. Learn More.

Analyst’s Disclosure: I/we have a beneficial long position in the shares of CWEN, AMCR, PEP, SWK, PFE, WTRG either through stock ownership, options, or other derivatives. I wrote this article myself, and it expresses my own opinions. I am not receiving compensation for it (other than from Seeking Alpha). I have no business relationship with any company whose stock is mentioned in this article.

Seeking Alpha’s Disclosure: Past performance is no guarantee of future results. No recommendation or advice is being given as to whether any investment is suitable for a particular investor. Any views or opinions expressed above may not reflect those of Seeking Alpha as a whole. Seeking Alpha is not a licensed securities dealer, broker or US investment adviser or investment bank. Our analysts are third party authors that include both professional investors and individual investors who may not be licensed or certified by any institute or regulatory body.

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TeraWulf CEO Paul Prager sells $2.3m in WULF stock

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TeraWulf CEO Paul Prager sells $2.3m in WULF stock

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Monopar Therapeutics director Kim Tsuchimoto sells $455,566 in shares

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Monopar Therapeutics director Kim Tsuchimoto sells $455,566 in shares

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Biovie director Amy Chappell acquires $1,570 in BIVI common stock

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Biovie director Amy Chappell acquires $1,570 in BIVI common stock

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Eurocommercial Properties N.V. (ECMPF) Q2 2026 Earnings Call Transcript

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OneWater Marine Inc. (ONEW) Q1 2026 Earnings Call Transcript