Lifeway Foods (NASDAQ:LWAY) Major Shareholder Ludmila Smolyansky Sells 40,000 Shares of Stock

Lifeway Foods, Inc. (NASDAQ:LWAY) major shareholder Ludmila Smolyansky sold 40,000 shares of Lifeway Foods stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, June 24th. The stock was sold at an average price of $30.12, for a total value of $1,204,800.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider directly owned 652,823 shares in the company, valued at $19,663,028.76. This trade represents a 5.77% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Major shareholders that own at least 10% of a company’s stock are required to disclose their sales and purchases with the SEC.

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

• On Thursday, June 25th, Ludmila Smolyansky sold 45,616 shares of Lifeway Foods stock. The shares were sold at an average price of $29.65, for a total value of $1,352,514.40.
• On Friday, May 15th, Ludmila Smolyansky sold 20,000 shares of Lifeway Foods stock. The shares were sold at an average price of $24.64, for a total value of $492,800.00.
• On Monday, April 20th, Ludmila Smolyansky sold 15,000 shares of Lifeway Foods stock. The stock was sold at an average price of $26.50, for a total transaction of $397,500.00.

Lifeway Foods Stock Down 3.1%

Shares of Lifeway Foods stock opened at $29.39 on Friday. 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 company’s 50 day moving average price is $25.58 and its 200-day moving average price is $23.27. The stock has a market capitalization of $449.08 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of 30.30 and a beta of 0.48.

Lifeway Foods (NASDAQ:LWAY) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, May 14th. The company reported $0.30 EPS for the quarter, meeting analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.30. The company had revenue of $63.01 million during 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%.

Institutional Trading of Lifeway Foods

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Rhumbline Advisers boosted its holdings in Lifeway Foods by 8.2% in the first quarter. Rhumbline Advisers now owns 6,068 shares of the company’s stock valued at $148,000 after acquiring an additional 462 shares in the last quarter. Alliancebernstein L.P. increased its position in Lifeway Foods by 5.7% during the 3rd quarter. Alliancebernstein L.P. now owns 9,250 shares of the company’s stock valued at $257,000 after purchasing an additional 500 shares during the period. Barclays PLC raised its holdings in Lifeway Foods by 9.0% in the 4th quarter. Barclays PLC now owns 8,009 shares of the company’s stock worth $194,000 after purchasing an additional 659 shares in the last quarter. State of Wyoming raised its holdings in Lifeway Foods by 9.0% in the 1st quarter. State of Wyoming now owns 9,015 shares of the company’s stock worth $174,000 after purchasing an additional 747 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Pekin Hardy Strauss Inc. lifted its position in shares of Lifeway Foods by 6.3% in the 4th quarter. Pekin Hardy Strauss Inc. now owns 16,750 shares of the company’s stock worth $406,000 after purchasing an additional 1,000 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 36.39% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities analysts have recently commented on the stock. Benchmark reaffirmed a “buy” rating on shares of Lifeway Foods in a research note on Monday, June 15th. Wall Street Zen cut Lifeway Foods from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Saturday, March 21st. Finally, Weiss Ratings upgraded Lifeway Foods from a “hold (c)” rating to a “hold (c+)” rating in a report on Thursday, May 14th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and one has given a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Lifeway Foods has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $34.33.

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.