Divisadero Street Capital Management LP Acquires New Shares in Lifeway Foods, Inc. (NASDAQ:LWAY)

Divisadero Street Capital Management LP bought a new position in shares of Lifeway Foods, Inc. (NASDAQ:LWAY) during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund bought 117,951 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,925,000.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in LWAY. Wells Fargo & Company MN raised 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 purchasing an additional 718 shares during the period. Rhumbline Advisers increased its stake in Lifeway Foods by 23.3% during the 4th quarter. Rhumbline Advisers now owns 5,606 shares of the company’s stock worth $139,000 after purchasing an additional 1,059 shares in the last quarter. Barclays PLC raised its holdings in Lifeway Foods by 40.5% during the 3rd quarter. Barclays PLC now owns 6,420 shares of the company’s stock worth $167,000 after buying an additional 1,849 shares during the period. Algert Global LLC lifted its stake in Lifeway Foods by 8.1% in the fourth quarter. Algert Global LLC now owns 9,076 shares of the company’s stock valued at $225,000 after buying an additional 680 shares in the last quarter. Finally, ClearAlpha Technologies LP bought a new position in Lifeway Foods in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $248,000. 36.39% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Lifeway Foods Price Performance

LWAY stock opened at $23.23 on Wednesday. The stock has a market capitalization of $353.09 million, a P/E ratio of 27.01 and a beta of 0.75. Lifeway Foods, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $10.06 and a fifty-two week high of $28.61. The business has a 50-day moving average of $23.05 and a 200-day moving average of $23.46.

Lifeway Foods (NASDAQ:LWAY) last released its earnings results on Friday, March 14th. The company reported ($0.01) EPS 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 the consensus estimate 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

In related news, major shareholder Ludmila Smolyansky sold 10,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, February 11th. The shares were sold at an average price of $21.31, for a total transaction of $213,100.00. Following the transaction, the insider now directly owns 17,343 shares in the company, valued at approximately $369,579.33. The trade was a 36.57 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, major shareholder Edward Smolyansky sold 20,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Tuesday, March 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $23.23, for a total transaction of $464,600.00. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now owns 1,251,642 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $29,075,643.66. This represents a 1.57 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last 90 days, insiders sold 75,885 shares of company stock worth $1,766,840. 18.86% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Separately, StockNews.com assumed coverage on shares of Lifeway Foods in a report on Thursday, May 1st. They set a “hold” rating on the 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.