Lifeway Foods (NASDAQ:LWAY) Now Covered by StockNews.com

Equities researchers at StockNews.com started coverage on shares of Lifeway Foods (NASDAQ:LWAY) in a research note issued on Tuesday. The firm set a “hold” rating on the stock.

Lifeway Foods Price Performance

LWAY opened at $23.89 on Tuesday. The firm has a market capitalization of $363.20 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of 27.78 and a beta of 0.93. The company’s 50 day simple moving average is $22.59 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $23.77. Lifeway Foods has a 1-year low of $10.06 and a 1-year high of $28.61.

Lifeway Foods (NASDAQ:LWAY) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Friday, March 14th. The company reported ($0.01) earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.18 by ($0.19). The firm had revenue of $46.93 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $48.00 million. Lifeway Foods had a net margin of 7.23% and a return on equity of 19.97%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Lifeway Foods

In other Lifeway Foods news, major shareholder Edward Smolyansky sold 20,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, March 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $23.23, for a total transaction of $464,600.00. Following the sale, the insider now directly owns 1,251,642 shares in the company, valued at $29,075,643.66. This represents a 1.57 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, major shareholder Ludmila Smolyansky sold 8,376 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, April 14th. The shares were sold at an average price of $23.62, for a total transaction of $197,841.12. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now directly owns 932,447 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $22,024,398.14. This represents a 0.89 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 60,410 shares of company stock worth $1,382,008 over the last quarter. 18.86% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Institutional Trading of Lifeway Foods

A number of large investors have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Rhumbline Advisers grew its stake in Lifeway Foods by 8.2% during the 1st quarter. Rhumbline Advisers now owns 6,068 shares of the company’s stock worth $148,000 after purchasing an additional 462 shares in the last quarter. Algert Global LLC boosted its stake in shares of Lifeway Foods by 8.1% in the 4th quarter. Algert Global LLC now owns 9,076 shares of the company’s stock valued at $225,000 after buying an additional 680 shares during the period. Barclays PLC grew its position in shares of Lifeway Foods by 11.0% during the fourth quarter. Barclays PLC now owns 7,127 shares of the company’s stock worth $176,000 after buying an additional 707 shares in the last quarter. Wells Fargo & Company MN grew its position in shares of Lifeway Foods by 33.6% during the fourth quarter. Wells Fargo & Company MN now owns 2,855 shares of the company’s stock worth $71,000 after buying an additional 718 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Bank of New York Mellon Corp increased its stake in shares of Lifeway Foods by 1.6% during the fourth quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 55,841 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,385,000 after buying an additional 868 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 36.39% of the company’s stock.

About Lifeway Foods

Lifeway Foods, Inc produces and markets probiotic-based products in the United States and internationally. Its primary product is drinkable kefir, a cultured dairy product in various organic and non-organic sizes, flavors, and types. The company offers European-style soft cheeses; cream and other products; ProBugs, a line of kefir products designed for children; drinkable yogurt; and fresh made butter and sour cream.