Ludmila Smolyansky Sells 15,000 Shares of Lifeway Foods, Inc. (NASDAQ:LWAY) Stock

Lifeway Foods, Inc. (NASDAQ:LWAY) major shareholder Ludmila Smolyansky sold 15,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, August 29th. The stock was sold at an average price of $18.19, for a total value of $272,850.00. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now owns 1,110,133 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $20,193,319.27. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Major shareholders that own more than 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 Tuesday, September 3rd, Ludmila Smolyansky sold 4,584 shares of Lifeway Foods stock. The stock was sold at an average price of $19.55, for a total transaction of $89,617.20.
• On Wednesday, July 24th, Ludmila Smolyansky sold 14,620 shares of Lifeway Foods stock. The stock was sold at an average price of $12.30, for a total transaction of $179,826.00.

Lifeway Foods Price Performance

Shares of LWAY opened at $19.97 on Thursday. Lifeway Foods, Inc. has a 1 year low of $9.06 and a 1 year high of $28.61. The company has a 50 day simple moving average of $14.21 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $15.70. The firm has a market cap of $293.70 million, a P/E ratio of 23.22 and a beta of 1.01.

Lifeway Foods (NASDAQ:LWAY) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, August 13th. The company reported $0.25 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.17 by $0.08. The company had revenue of $49.16 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $46.50 million. Lifeway Foods had a net margin of 7.69% and a return on equity of 21.92%. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $0.21 EPS. On average, sell-side analysts anticipate that Lifeway Foods, Inc. will post 0.99 earnings per share for the current year.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Lifeway Foods

Several large investors have recently made changes to their positions in LWAY. Jump Financial LLC purchased a new position in Lifeway Foods during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $303,000. Navellier & Associates Inc. increased its position in Lifeway Foods by 53.6% in the fourth quarter. Navellier & Associates Inc. now owns 37,181 shares of the company’s stock worth $499,000 after purchasing an additional 12,981 shares during the last quarter. Hillsdale Investment Management Inc. raised its stake in Lifeway Foods by 15.6% during the fourth quarter. Hillsdale Investment Management Inc. now owns 235,097 shares of the company’s stock valued at $3,153,000 after purchasing an additional 31,813 shares in the last quarter. Gamco Investors INC. ET AL lifted its position in Lifeway Foods by 37.8% during the first quarter. Gamco Investors INC. ET AL now owns 109,700 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,889,000 after purchasing an additional 30,100 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Bank of New York Mellon Corp grew its stake in shares of Lifeway Foods by 56.6% in the 2nd quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 58,589 shares of the company’s stock worth $748,000 after buying an additional 21,168 shares in the last quarter. 36.39% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several analysts have recently commented on LWAY shares. Lake Street Capital raised their price objective on shares of Lifeway Foods from $25.00 to $28.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, May 15th. StockNews.com raised Lifeway Foods from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Saturday, August 31st. Finally, Noble Financial upped their price objective on Lifeway Foods from $20.00 to $25.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Tuesday.

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.