Walgreens acquires Snyder Drug chain in Minnesota

Walgreen Co., the largest U.S. drugstore chain by retail pharmacy sales, agreed to buy the pharmacy business and certain other assets of 25 company-owned Snyder's Drug Stores in Minnesota.

Walgreen, based in Deerfield, will keep certain Snyder's stores open and will transfer existing prescription files at the other stores to Walgreens pharmacies, the company said today in a statement. Terms weren't disclosed.

Walgreen and CVS Caremark Corp. have been buying independent pharmacies to get better prices on drugs and other products. Expanding their shopping locations also can make the companies more convenient to consumers.

Walgreen rose 34 cents to $37.08 at 4:15 p.m. in New York Stock Exchange composite trading. The shares rose 49 percent last year.