Insider Selling: Lifeway Foods, Inc. (NASDAQ:LWAY) Major Shareholder Sells 3,620 Shares of Stock

Lifeway Foods, Inc. (NASDAQ:LWAY) major shareholder Ludmila Smolyansky sold 3,620 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, April 25th. The shares were sold at an average price of $21.56, for a total transaction of $78,047.20. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now owns 1,254,753 shares in the company, valued at approximately $27,052,474.68. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Large shareholders that own at least 10% of a company’s shares are required to disclose their sales and purchases with the SEC.

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

• On Tuesday, April 23rd, Ludmila Smolyansky sold 21,968 shares of Lifeway Foods stock. The shares were sold at an average price of $20.33, for a total transaction of $446,609.44.
• On Wednesday, April 17th, Ludmila Smolyansky sold 10,000 shares of Lifeway Foods stock. The stock was sold at an average price of $20.04, for a total transaction of $200,400.00.
• On Monday, April 15th, Ludmila Smolyansky sold 2,193 shares of Lifeway Foods stock. The shares were 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 shares were 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 shares were sold at an average price of $15.80, for a total transaction of $60,861.60.
• On Wednesday, March 20th, Ludmila Smolyansky sold 13,000 shares of Lifeway Foods stock. The shares were sold at an average price of $12.87, for a total transaction 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 transaction 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.

Lifeway Foods Stock Up 15.7 %

Shares of Lifeway Foods stock opened at $24.87 on Friday. The business has a 50-day moving average price of $15.85 and a 200 day moving average price of $13.91. Lifeway Foods, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $5.61 and a fifty-two week high of $24.95. The firm has a market cap of $365.34 million, a P/E ratio of 32.72 and a beta of 1.33. The company has a quick ratio of 1.75, a current ratio of 2.30 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.02.

Lifeway Foods (NASDAQ:LWAY) last issued its quarterly earnings results 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 business had revenue of $42.09 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $40.00 million. On average, sell-side analysts forecast that Lifeway Foods, Inc. will post 1 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Institutional Trading of Lifeway Foods

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the business. Tower Research Capital LLC TRC grew its position in shares of Lifeway Foods by 656.8% during the 4th quarter. Tower Research Capital LLC TRC now owns 5,010 shares of the company’s stock valued at $67,000 after buying an additional 4,348 shares during the last quarter. Hillsdale Investment Management Inc. boosted its stake in Lifeway Foods by 15.6% in the fourth quarter. Hillsdale Investment Management Inc. now owns 235,097 shares of the company’s stock valued at $3,153,000 after acquiring an additional 31,813 shares during the period. Navellier & Associates Inc. grew its holdings in shares of Lifeway Foods by 53.6% during the fourth quarter. Navellier & Associates Inc. now owns 37,181 shares of the company’s stock valued at $499,000 after purchasing an additional 12,981 shares during the last quarter. Jump Financial LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Lifeway Foods during the 4th quarter worth approximately $303,000. Finally, Bailard Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Lifeway Foods in the 4th quarter worth approximately $187,000. 36.39% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of brokerages recently commented on LWAY. Lake Street Capital assumed 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. Noble Financial reissued a “market perform” rating on shares of Lifeway Foods in a research report on Wednesday, March 27th. Finally, StockNews.com cut shares of Lifeway Foods from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Saturday, April 6th.

Lifeway Foods Company Profile

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.