Insider Selling: Lifeway Foods, Inc. (NASDAQ:LWAY) Major Shareholder Sells $200,400.00 in Stock

Lifeway Foods, Inc. (NASDAQ:LWAY) major shareholder Ludmila Smolyansky sold 10,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, April 17th. The stock was sold at an average price of $20.04, for a total value of $200,400.00. Following the transaction, the insider now directly owns 1,290,341 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $25,858,433.64. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Major shareholders that own at least 10% of a company’s stock are required to disclose their sales and purchases with the SEC.

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

• On Monday, April 15th, Ludmila Smolyansky sold 2,193 shares of Lifeway Foods stock. The stock was sold at an average price of $20.50, for a total value of $44,956.50.
• On Friday, April 5th, Ludmila Smolyansky sold 5,000 shares of Lifeway Foods stock. The stock was sold at an average price of $19.56, for a total value of $97,800.00.
• On Monday, April 8th, Ludmila Smolyansky sold 5,000 shares of Lifeway Foods stock. The stock was sold at an average price of $20.40, for a total value of $102,000.00.
• On Tuesday, March 26th, Ludmila Smolyansky sold 13,000 shares of Lifeway Foods stock. The stock was sold at an average price of $18.71, for a total value of $243,230.00.
• On Friday, March 22nd, Ludmila Smolyansky sold 3,852 shares of Lifeway Foods stock. The stock was sold at an average price of $15.80, for a total value of $60,861.60.
• On Wednesday, March 20th, Ludmila Smolyansky sold 13,000 shares of Lifeway Foods stock. The stock was sold at an average price of $12.87, for a total value of $167,310.00.
• On Monday, February 26th, Ludmila Smolyansky sold 13,542 shares of Lifeway Foods stock. The stock was sold at an average price of $12.34, for a total value of $167,108.28.
• On Thursday, February 8th, Ludmila Smolyansky sold 22,747 shares of Lifeway Foods stock. The shares were sold at an average price of $11.61, for a total value of $264,092.67.
• On Tuesday, February 6th, Ludmila Smolyansky sold 10,000 shares of Lifeway Foods stock. The shares were sold at an average price of $11.84, for a total value of $118,400.00.
• On Wednesday, January 24th, Ludmila Smolyansky sold 5,000 shares of Lifeway Foods stock. The shares were sold at an average price of $13.44, for a total value of $67,200.00.

Lifeway Foods Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ LWAY opened at $19.40 on Friday. The company has a current ratio of 2.30, a quick ratio of 1.75 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.02. Lifeway Foods, Inc. has a twelve month low of $5.61 and a twelve month high of $23.31. The stock has a 50 day moving average of $14.66 and a two-hundred day moving average of $13.47. The stock has a market cap of $285.01 million, a P/E ratio of 25.53 and a beta of 1.33.

Lifeway Foods (NASDAQ:LWAY) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, March 20th. The company reported $0.26 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.21 by $0.05. Lifeway Foods had a return on equity of 20.92% and a net margin of 7.10%. The company had revenue of $42.09 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $40.00 million. On average, research analysts forecast that Lifeway Foods, Inc. will post 1 earnings per share for the current year.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Lifeway Foods

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Renaissance Technologies LLC raised its stake in shares of Lifeway Foods by 2.2% during the first quarter. Renaissance Technologies LLC now owns 383,982 shares of the company’s stock worth $2,319,000 after purchasing an additional 8,200 shares during the last quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP raised its stake in shares of Lifeway Foods by 7.3% during the fourth quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 317,479 shares of the company’s stock worth $4,257,000 after purchasing an additional 21,732 shares during the last quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. raised its stake in shares of Lifeway Foods by 0.9% during the fourth quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 260,569 shares of the company’s stock worth $3,494,000 after purchasing an additional 2,211 shares during the last quarter. Hillsdale Investment Management Inc. raised its stake in shares of Lifeway Foods by 15.6% during the fourth quarter. Hillsdale Investment Management Inc. now owns 235,097 shares of the company’s stock worth $3,153,000 after purchasing an additional 31,813 shares during the last quarter. Finally, EAM Investors LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Lifeway Foods during the third quarter worth approximately $1,353,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 36.39% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

LWAY has been the subject of a number of research analyst reports. Noble Financial reaffirmed a “market perform” rating on shares of Lifeway Foods in a report on Wednesday, March 27th. StockNews.com downgraded Lifeway Foods from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Saturday, April 6th. Finally, Lake Street Capital initiated coverage on Lifeway Foods in a report on Friday, April 5th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $25.00 price target for the company.

About Lifeway Foods

Lifeway Foods, Inc produces and markets probiotic-based products in the United States and internationally. Its primary product is drinkable kefir, a cultured dairy product in various organic and non-organic sizes, flavors, and types. The company offers European-style soft cheeses; cream and other products; ProBugs, a line of kefir products designed for children; drinkable yogurt; and fresh made butter and sour cream.