Lifeway Foods, Inc. (NASDAQ:LWAY) Short Interest Update

Lifeway Foods, Inc. (NASDAQ:LWAY) was the recipient of a large drop in short interest during the month of May. As of May 29th, there was short interest totaling 421,205 shares, a drop of 59.1% from the May 14th total of 1,030,606 shares. Approximately 3.4% of the company’s shares are sold short. Based on an average daily volume of 146,212 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is currently 2.9 days.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Lifeway Foods news, major shareholder Edward Smolyansky sold 24,000 shares of Lifeway Foods stock in a transaction dated Friday, May 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $24.87, for a total value of $596,880.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider directly owned 1,052,642 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $26,179,206.54. The trade was a 2.23% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, major shareholder Ludmila Smolyansky sold 20,000 shares of Lifeway Foods stock in a transaction dated Friday, May 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $24.64, for a total value of $492,800.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider directly owned 712,823 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $17,563,958.72. This represents a 2.73% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Insiders sold a total of 3,598,756 shares of company stock valued at $70,654,047 over the last 90 days. Company insiders own 18.58% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Lifeway Foods

Institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Larson Financial Group LLC purchased a new stake in Lifeway Foods during the third quarter worth approximately $31,000. BNP Paribas Financial Markets lifted its stake in Lifeway Foods by 577.3% during the second quarter. BNP Paribas Financial Markets now owns 1,551 shares of the company’s stock worth $38,000 after purchasing an additional 1,322 shares during the last quarter. Raymond James Financial Inc. purchased a new stake in Lifeway Foods during the second quarter worth approximately $40,000. New York State Common Retirement Fund lifted its stake in Lifeway Foods by 433.3% during the third quarter. New York State Common Retirement Fund now owns 1,600 shares of the company’s stock worth $44,000 after purchasing an additional 1,300 shares during the last quarter. Finally, State of Alaska Department of Revenue lifted its stake in Lifeway Foods by 302.0% during the fourth quarter. State of Alaska Department of Revenue now owns 2,967 shares of the company’s stock worth $71,000 after purchasing an additional 2,229 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 36.39% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

LWAY has been the subject of several research reports. Wall Street Zen downgraded Lifeway Foods from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Saturday, March 21st. Weiss Ratings raised Lifeway Foods from a “hold (c)” rating to a “hold (c+)” rating in a research report on Thursday, May 14th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and one has given a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Lifeway Foods currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $34.33.

Lifeway Foods Stock Up 0.3%

Shares of LWAY traded up $0.07 during midday trading on Friday, hitting $25.07. The company had a trading volume of 124,881 shares, compared to its average volume of 132,815. The company’s 50-day simple moving average is $24.85 and its 200-day simple moving average is $23.07. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.08, a quick ratio of 1.56 and a current ratio of 2.14. The firm has a market capitalization of $383.07 million, a P/E ratio of 25.84 and a beta of 0.48. Lifeway Foods has a 1 year low of $17.31 and a 1 year high of $34.20.

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

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.