Lifeway Foods (NASDAQ:LWAY) Major Shareholder Edward Smolyansky Sells 70,000 Shares of Stock

Lifeway Foods, Inc. (NASDAQ:LWAY) major shareholder Edward Smolyansky sold 70,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, November 4th. The stock was sold at an average price of $22.62, for a total transaction of $1,583,400.00. Following the transaction, the insider owned 794,793 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $17,978,217.66. This trade represents a 8.09% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Large shareholders that own more than 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, October 13th, Edward Smolyansky sold 30,000 shares of Lifeway Foods stock. The shares were sold at an average price of $22.64, for a total value of $679,200.00.
• On Wednesday, August 12th, Edward Smolyansky sold 35,000 shares of Lifeway Foods stock. The shares were sold at an average price of $28.74, for a total value of $1,005,900.00.
• On Friday, August 14th, Edward Smolyansky sold 75,000 shares of Lifeway Foods stock. The shares were sold at an average price of $25.45, for a total value of $1,908,750.00.

Lifeway Foods Trading Down 0.4%

NASDAQ LWAY opened at $22.20 on Friday. The company has a market cap of $335.44 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of 31.86 and a beta of 0.51. Lifeway Foods, Inc. has a twelve month low of $17.31 and a twelve month high of $32.71. 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’s fifty day moving average is $23.09 and its 200 day moving average is $24.52.

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

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

LWAY has been the topic of several research reports. Weiss Ratings cut Lifeway Foods from a “buy (b-)” rating to a “hold (c)” rating in a report on Thursday, August 13th. BTIG Research assumed coverage on shares of Lifeway Foods in a report on Thursday, August 20th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $32.00 price objective for the company. Freedom Capital upgraded shares of Lifeway Foods from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Friday, August 14th. Finally, Wall Street Zen lowered shares of Lifeway Foods from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a report on Saturday, August 15th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, two have issued a Buy rating and one has given a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, Lifeway Foods presently has a consensus rating of “Buy” and a consensus price target of $34.00.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Lifeway Foods

A number of institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in LWAY. Wellington Management Group LLP acquired a new stake in Lifeway Foods during the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $17,459,000. BlackRock Inc. bought a new position in Lifeway Foods during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $9,614,000. Pillsbury Lake Capital LLC acquired a new position in shares of Lifeway Foods in the 2nd quarter worth approximately $8,704,597. AWM Investment Company Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Lifeway Foods in the 2nd quarter worth approximately $6,654,000. Finally, HBK Investments L P acquired a new position in shares of Lifeway Foods in the 2nd quarter worth approximately $4,476,000. Institutional investors own 36.39% of the company’s stock.

About Lifeway Foods

Lifeway Foods, Inc is a U.S.-based food company that produces and markets cultured and probiotic dairy products. Its portfolio is centered on kefir, a fermented milk beverage available in a variety of flavors and formats, including low-fat, whole-milk, organic and lactose-free options.

The company also offers drinkable yogurt, sour cream, farmer cheese, cream cheese and other cultured dairy products. Through its Green Valley Creamery brand, Lifeway markets lactose-free organic kefir and related dairy products, while its products are sold through grocery stores, natural and specialty food retailers, club stores, mass merchandise channels and e-commerce platforms.

Lifeway Foods was founded in 1986 by Michael and Ludmila Smolyansky, who helped introduce kefir to a broader U.S.