Lifeway Foods (NASDAQ:LWAY) Major Shareholder Edward Smolyansky Sells 7,984 Shares of Stock

Lifeway Foods, Inc. (NASDAQ:LWAY) major shareholder Edward Smolyansky sold 7,984 shares of the stock in a transaction on Monday, July 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $29.79, for a total value of $237,843.36. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider owned 1,110,807 shares in the company, valued at approximately $33,090,940.53. This represents a 0.71% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Large shareholders that own at least 10% of a company’s shares are required to disclose their transactions with the SEC.

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

• On Tuesday, July 7th, Edward Smolyansky sold 39,098 shares of Lifeway Foods stock. The shares were sold at an average price of $29.41, for a total transaction of $1,149,872.18.
• On Tuesday, June 30th, Edward Smolyansky sold 50,000 shares of Lifeway Foods stock. The stock was sold at an average price of $29.56, for a total transaction of $1,478,000.00.
• On Friday, June 26th, Edward Smolyansky sold 111,548 shares of Lifeway Foods stock. The shares were sold at an average price of $29.26, for a total transaction of $3,263,894.48.
• On Wednesday, June 24th, Edward Smolyansky sold 38,452 shares of Lifeway Foods stock. The shares were sold at an average price of $29.85, for a total transaction of $1,147,792.20.
• On Monday, June 22nd, Edward Smolyansky sold 50,000 shares of Lifeway Foods stock. The stock was sold at an average price of $26.20, for a total transaction of $1,310,000.00.
• On Friday, May 15th, Edward Smolyansky sold 24,000 shares of Lifeway Foods stock. The stock was sold at an average price of $24.87, for a total transaction 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 transaction of $633,500.00.

Lifeway Foods Price Performance

LWAY stock opened at $30.91 on Friday. The company has a market capitalization of $472.30 million, a P/E ratio of 31.87 and a beta of 0.45. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.08, a quick ratio of 1.56 and a current ratio of 2.14. Lifeway Foods, Inc. has a 52-week low of $17.31 and a 52-week high of $34.20. The business has a 50-day simple moving average of $26.21 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $23.69.

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

Analyst Ratings Changes

LWAY has been the topic of several recent analyst reports. Benchmark restated a “buy” rating on shares of Lifeway Foods in a research note on Monday, June 15th. Weiss Ratings upgraded shares of Lifeway Foods from a “hold (c)” rating to a “hold (c+)” rating in a report on Thursday, May 14th. Finally, Wall Street Zen lowered shares of Lifeway Foods from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Saturday, March 21st. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and one has issued a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Lifeway Foods has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $34.33.

Institutional Trading of Lifeway Foods

A number of hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the business. Steadtrust LLC purchased a new position in Lifeway Foods in the second quarter worth $477,000. Carlson Capital L.P. purchased a new stake in shares of Lifeway Foods during the 1st quarter valued at $193,000. Vivaldi Capital Management LP bought a new stake in shares of Lifeway Foods during the 1st quarter worth $213,000. Teton Advisors LLC bought a new stake in shares of Lifeway Foods during the 1st quarter worth $193,000. Finally, Gamco Investors INC. ET AL boosted its holdings in shares of Lifeway Foods by 33.5% in 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 during the last quarter. 36.39% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

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.