Lifeway Foods (NASDAQ:LWAY) Major Shareholder Ludmila Smolyansky Sells 20,000 Shares

Lifeway Foods, Inc. (NASDAQ:LWAY) major shareholder Ludmila Smolyansky sold 20,000 shares of Lifeway Foods stock in a transaction dated Friday, May 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $24.64, for a total transaction of $492,800.00. Following the completion of the sale, the insider directly owned 712,823 shares in the company, valued at approximately $17,563,958.72. The trade was a 2.73% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Large shareholders that own at least 10% of a company’s stock are required to disclose their transactions with the SEC.

Ludmila Smolyansky also recently made the following trade(s):

• On Monday, April 20th, Ludmila Smolyansky sold 15,000 shares of Lifeway Foods stock. The shares were sold at an average price of $26.50, for a total transaction of $397,500.00.
• On Wednesday, March 18th, Ludmila Smolyansky sold 10,000 shares of Lifeway Foods stock. The shares were sold at an average price of $18.74, for a total transaction of $187,400.00.

Lifeway Foods Stock Up 5.9%

Shares of NASDAQ:LWAY opened at $25.20 on Wednesday. The company has a market cap of $385.06 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of 25.98 and a beta of 0.53. The firm’s 50-day simple moving average is $23.22 and its 200-day simple moving average is $22.96. The company has a quick ratio of 1.56, a current ratio of 2.14 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.08. Lifeway Foods, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $17.31 and a fifty-two week high of $34.20.

Lifeway Foods (NASDAQ:LWAY) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, May 14th. The company reported $0.30 earnings per share for the quarter, meeting the consensus estimate of $0.30. The business had revenue of $63.01 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $60.80 million. Lifeway Foods had a net margin of 6.54% and a return on equity of 17.76%.

Institutional Trading of Lifeway Foods

A number of institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Larson Financial Group LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Lifeway Foods in the third quarter valued at about $31,000. BNP Paribas Financial Markets lifted its holdings in shares of Lifeway Foods by 577.3% in the second quarter. BNP Paribas Financial Markets now owns 1,551 shares of the company’s stock valued at $38,000 after purchasing an additional 1,322 shares in the last quarter. Raymond James Financial Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Lifeway Foods in the second quarter valued at about $40,000. New York State Common Retirement Fund lifted its holdings in shares of Lifeway Foods by 433.3% in the third quarter. New York State Common Retirement Fund now owns 1,600 shares of the company’s stock valued at $44,000 after purchasing an additional 1,300 shares in the last quarter. Finally, State of Alaska Department of Revenue lifted its holdings in shares of Lifeway Foods by 302.0% in the fourth quarter. State of Alaska Department of Revenue now owns 2,967 shares of the company’s stock valued at $71,000 after purchasing an additional 2,229 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 36.39% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of analysts recently commented on the stock. Weiss Ratings raised shares of Lifeway Foods from a “hold (c)” rating to a “hold (c+)” rating in a report on Thursday, May 14th. Wall Street Zen downgraded shares of Lifeway Foods from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Saturday, March 21st. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and one has assigned a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $34.33.

Lifeway Foods News Summary

Here are the key news stories impacting Lifeway Foods this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Major shareholder Divisadero Street Capital made notable purchases of Lifeway Foods shares, including 33,174 shares at $25.27 and a larger 131,871-share buy at $25.50. Insider buying can be viewed as a vote of confidence in the company’s outlook. Insider trading reference
• Neutral Sentiment: Lifeway Foods reported solid first-quarter results last week, meeting EPS expectations at $0.30 and topping revenue estimates with $63.01 million in sales. That keeps the fundamental backdrop constructive for the stock. LWAY stock overview
• Negative Sentiment: Major shareholder Edward Smolyansky sold 24,000 shares at $24.87 and 25,000 shares at $25.34, while Ludmila Smolyansky also sold 20,000 shares at $24.64. Multiple insider sales may pressure sentiment because they can suggest some shareholders are taking profits. Article on Edward Smolyansky sales

Lifeway Foods Company Profile

Lifeway Foods, Inc (NASDAQ: LWAY) is a Chicago-based food company specializing in probiotic-rich cultured dairy products. Established in 1986 by Michael Smolyansky, the company pioneered the introduction of kefir to the U.S. market. Under the leadership of CEO Julie Smolyansky, who succeeded her father in 2002, Lifeway has grown from a single product operation into a diversified portfolio of fermented foods and beverages aimed at promoting digestive health and wellness.

The company’s flagship product is kefir, a cultured milk beverage naturally rich in probiotics, vitamins and minerals.