Insider Buying: Lifeway Foods (NASDAQ:LWAY) Major Shareholder Purchases $890,890.56 in Stock

Lifeway Foods, Inc. (NASDAQ:LWAY) major shareholder Divisadero Street Capital Mana acquired 35,952 shares of Lifeway Foods stock in a transaction dated Monday, August 17th. The shares were acquired at an average cost of $24.78 per share, with a total value of $890,890.56. Following the completion of the acquisition, the insider directly owned 2,348,108 shares in the company, valued at $58,186,116.24. This trade represents a 1.55% increase in their position. The purchase was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Major shareholders that own 10% or more of a company’s stock are required to disclose their transactions with the SEC.

Divisadero Street Capital Mana also recently made the following trade(s):

• On Friday, August 14th, Divisadero Street Capital Mana bought 15,000 shares of Lifeway Foods stock. The stock was acquired at an average cost of $24.69 per share, for a total transaction of $370,350.00.
• On Thursday, August 13th, Divisadero Street Capital Mana purchased 195,616 shares of Lifeway Foods stock. The stock was acquired at an average cost of $24.87 per share, with a total value of $4,864,969.92.

Lifeway Foods Price Performance

LWAY traded down $1.07 during midday trading on Monday, reaching $24.75. 297,744 shares of the company’s stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 151,718. The company has a quick ratio of 1.47, a current ratio of 2.09 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.26. The business has a 50-day simple moving average of $29.03 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $25.07. The firm has a market capitalization of $373.97 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of 35.36 and a beta of 0.44. Lifeway Foods, Inc. has a one year low of $17.31 and a one year high of $34.20.

Lifeway Foods (NASDAQ:LWAY) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, August 13th. The company reported $0.01 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.26 by ($0.25). Lifeway Foods had a net margin of 4.48% and a return on equity of 12.66%. The company had revenue of $66.89 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $61.40 million.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in LWAY. Gamco Investors INC. ET AL lifted its position in Lifeway Foods by 33.5% during the 1st quarter. Gamco Investors INC. ET AL now owns 214,650 shares of the company’s stock worth $4,151,000 after buying an additional 53,900 shares in the last quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP increased its position in Lifeway Foods by 8.8% in the 1st quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 235,710 shares of the company’s stock valued at $4,558,000 after acquiring an additional 19,035 shares in the last quarter. Steadtrust LLC bought a new position in shares of Lifeway Foods in the second quarter worth about $477,000. Carlson Capital L.P. acquired a new position in shares of Lifeway Foods during the first quarter worth approximately $193,000. Finally, State of Wyoming grew its stake in shares of Lifeway Foods by 9.0% during the first quarter. State of Wyoming now owns 9,015 shares of the company’s stock valued at $174,000 after purchasing an additional 747 shares during the last quarter. 36.39% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research analysts have issued reports on LWAY shares. Wall Street Zen lowered Lifeway Foods from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a research note on Saturday. Benchmark reiterated a “buy” rating on shares of Lifeway Foods in a research report on Monday, June 15th. Finally, Weiss Ratings downgraded shares of Lifeway Foods from a “buy (b-)” rating to a “hold (c)” rating in a report on Thursday. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Buy rating and one has assigned a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $35.00.

About Lifeway Foods

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.