Edward Smolyansky Sells 38,452 Shares of Lifeway Foods (NASDAQ:LWAY) Stock

Lifeway Foods, Inc. (NASDAQ:LWAY) major shareholder Edward Smolyansky sold 38,452 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, June 24th. The shares were sold at an average price of $29.85, for a total value of $1,147,792.20. Following the sale, the insider directly owned 1,014,190 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $30,273,571.50. This represents a 3.65% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Large shareholders that own at least 10% of a company’s stock are required to disclose their transactions with the SEC.

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

• On Monday, June 22nd, Edward Smolyansky sold 50,000 shares of Lifeway Foods stock. The shares were sold at an average price of $26.20, for a total value of $1,310,000.00.
• On Friday, May 15th, Edward Smolyansky sold 24,000 shares of Lifeway Foods stock. The shares were sold at an average price of $24.87, for a total value of $596,880.00.
• On Thursday, May 14th, Edward Smolyansky sold 25,000 shares of Lifeway Foods stock. The shares were sold at an average price of $25.34, for a total value of $633,500.00.

Lifeway Foods Price Performance

Lifeway Foods stock opened at $29.39 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.08, a current ratio of 2.14 and a quick ratio of 1.56. The business has a 50 day simple moving average of $25.58 and a 200-day simple moving average of $23.27. Lifeway Foods, Inc. has a 12 month low of $17.31 and a 12 month high of $34.20. The stock has a market capitalization of $449.08 million, a PE ratio of 30.30 and a beta of 0.48.

Lifeway Foods (NASDAQ:LWAY) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, May 14th. The company reported $0.30 earnings per share for the quarter, meeting analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.30. The firm had revenue of $63.01 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $60.80 million. Lifeway Foods had a net margin of 6.54% and a return on equity of 17.76%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several analysts have recently weighed in 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. Benchmark reissued a “buy” rating on shares of Lifeway Foods in a report on Monday, June 15th. Finally, Wall Street Zen downgraded shares of Lifeway Foods from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Saturday, March 21st. Two analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and one has issued a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $34.33.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the business. Divisadero Street Capital Management LP purchased a new position in Lifeway Foods in the third quarter worth $17,494,000. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP boosted its position in shares of Lifeway Foods by 8.8% during the 1st quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 235,710 shares of the company’s stock worth $4,558,000 after purchasing an additional 19,035 shares in the last quarter. Gamco Investors INC. ET AL boosted its position in shares of 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 purchasing an additional 53,900 shares in the last quarter. Tudor Investment Corp ET AL grew its stake in shares of Lifeway Foods by 73.0% during the 4th quarter. Tudor Investment Corp ET AL now owns 163,361 shares of the company’s stock worth $3,958,000 after purchasing an additional 68,956 shares during the period. Finally, Slotnik Capital LLC increased its holdings in shares of Lifeway Foods by 9.2% in the 3rd quarter. Slotnik Capital LLC now owns 141,761 shares of the company’s stock valued at $3,935,000 after purchasing an additional 11,921 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 36.39% of the company’s stock.

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.