Rhumbline Advisers Raises Stock Holdings in Lifeway Foods, Inc. (NASDAQ:LWAY)

Rhumbline Advisers increased its stake in shares of Lifeway Foods, Inc. (NASDAQ:LWAY) by 2,334.0% in the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 4,868 shares of the company’s stock after purchasing an additional 4,668 shares during the quarter. Rhumbline Advisers’ holdings in Lifeway Foods were worth $62,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Several other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in LWAY. Panagora Asset Management Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Lifeway Foods during the 2nd quarter valued at $267,000. Bailard Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Lifeway Foods during the second quarter worth $253,000. Bank of New York Mellon Corp raised its holdings in shares of Lifeway Foods by 56.6% during the second quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 58,589 shares of the company’s stock worth $748,000 after purchasing an additional 21,168 shares during the period. Gamco Investors INC. ET AL lifted its position in shares of Lifeway Foods by 37.8% in the 1st quarter. Gamco Investors INC. ET AL now owns 109,700 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,889,000 after buying an additional 30,100 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Hillsdale Investment Management Inc. grew its holdings in shares of Lifeway Foods by 4.8% during the first quarter. Hillsdale Investment Management Inc. now owns 246,480 shares of the company’s stock valued at $4,244,000 after purchasing an additional 11,383 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 36.39% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

LWAY has been the topic of several research reports. StockNews.com cut Lifeway Foods from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Sunday, September 8th. Noble Financial lowered Lifeway Foods from an “outperform” rating to a “market perform” rating in a research report on Tuesday, September 24th.

Lifeway Foods Trading Down 0.2 %

NASDAQ LWAY opened at $25.92 on Tuesday. Lifeway Foods, Inc. has a 1 year low of $9.06 and a 1 year high of $28.61. The company has a fifty day simple moving average of $17.84 and a 200 day simple moving average of $17.09. The company has a market cap of $381.21 million, a P/E ratio of 30.41 and a beta of 1.02.

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

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, major shareholder Ludmila Smolyansky sold 4,584 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, September 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $19.55, for a total transaction of $89,617.20. Following the transaction, the insider now directly owns 1,085,549 shares in the company, valued at $21,222,482.95. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. In related news, major shareholder Ludmila Smolyansky sold 4,584 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, September 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $19.55, for a total value of $89,617.20. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now owns 1,085,549 shares in the company, valued at $21,222,482.95. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, CFO Eric A. Hanson sold 5,546 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, August 16th. The shares were sold at an average price of $18.91, for a total transaction of $104,874.86. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer now owns 25,546 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $483,074.86. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 52,698 shares of company stock worth $887,612 in the last 90 days. 31.77% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Lifeway Foods Profile

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.