Edward Smolyansky Sells 35,000 Shares of Lifeway Foods (NASDAQ:LWAY) Stock

Lifeway Foods, Inc. (NASDAQ:LWAY) major shareholder Edward Smolyansky sold 35,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, August 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $28.74, for a total value of $1,005,900.00. Following the transaction, the insider owned 969,793 shares in the company, valued at approximately $27,871,850.82. This trade represents a 3.48% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Major shareholders that own 10% or more of a company’s shares are required to disclose their transactions with the SEC.

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

• 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.
• On Tuesday, July 7th, Edward Smolyansky sold 39,098 shares of Lifeway Foods stock. The shares were sold at an average price of $29.41, for a total value of $1,149,872.18.
• On Monday, July 6th, Edward Smolyansky sold 7,984 shares of Lifeway Foods stock. The stock was sold at an average price of $29.79, for a total value of $237,843.36.
• On Tuesday, June 30th, Edward Smolyansky sold 50,000 shares of Lifeway Foods stock. The stock was sold at an average price of $29.56, for a total value of $1,478,000.00.
• On Friday, June 26th, Edward Smolyansky sold 111,548 shares of Lifeway Foods stock. The stock was sold at an average price of $29.26, for a total value of $3,263,894.48.
• On Wednesday, June 24th, Edward Smolyansky sold 38,452 shares of Lifeway Foods stock. The shares were sold at an average price of $29.85, for a total transaction of $1,147,792.20.
• On Monday, June 22nd, Edward Smolyansky sold 50,000 shares of Lifeway Foods stock. The shares were sold at an average price of $26.20, for a total transaction of $1,310,000.00.

Lifeway Foods Stock Up 4.5%

LWAY stock opened at $25.82 on Friday. The firm has a 50 day moving average of $29.01 and a 200 day moving average of $25.03. The stock has a market capitalization of $394.58 million, a PE ratio of 36.89 and a beta of 0.44. The company has a quick ratio of 1.56, a current ratio of 2.14 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.08. Lifeway Foods, Inc. has a 52 week low of $17.31 and a 52 week high of $34.20.

Lifeway Foods (NASDAQ:LWAY) last released its earnings results on Thursday, August 13th. The company reported $0.01 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.26 by ($0.25). The company had revenue of $66.89 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $61.40 million. Lifeway Foods had a return on equity of 12.60% and a net margin of 4.48%.

Institutional Trading of Lifeway Foods

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the business. BlackRock Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Lifeway Foods in the 2nd quarter valued at $9,614,000. AWM Investment Company Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Lifeway Foods during the second quarter worth $6,654,000. Marshall Wace LLP purchased a new position in shares of Lifeway Foods during the fourth quarter worth $2,984,000. Two Sigma Investments LP lifted its position in Lifeway Foods by 260.4% during the third quarter. Two Sigma Investments LP now owns 101,311 shares of the company’s stock valued at $2,812,000 after purchasing an additional 73,203 shares during the period. Finally, Tudor Investment Corp ET AL lifted its position in Lifeway Foods by 73.0% during the fourth quarter. Tudor Investment Corp ET AL now owns 163,361 shares of the company’s stock valued at $3,958,000 after purchasing an additional 68,956 shares during the period. 36.39% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research firms recently issued reports on LWAY. Weiss Ratings downgraded Lifeway Foods from a “buy (b-)” rating to a “hold (c)” rating in a research report on Thursday. Benchmark reiterated a “buy” rating on shares of Lifeway Foods in a research note on Monday, June 15th. Finally, Wall Street Zen lowered Lifeway Foods from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a report on Saturday. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Buy rating and one has issued a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Lifeway Foods presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $35.00.

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.