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 firm’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, August 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $28.74, for a total transaction of $1,005,900.00. Following the completion of the sale, the insider owned 969,793 shares in the company, valued at approximately $27,871,850.82. The trade was a 3.48% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Major shareholders that own at least 10% of a company’s stock are required to disclose their sales and purchases 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 transaction 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 transaction 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 transaction 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 transaction of $1,478,000.00.
• On Friday, June 26th, Edward Smolyansky sold 111,548 shares of Lifeway Foods stock. The shares were sold at an average price of $29.26, for a total transaction of $3,263,894.48.
• On Wednesday, June 24th, Edward Smolyansky sold 38,452 shares of Lifeway Foods stock. The stock was sold at an average price of $29.85, for a total value 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 value of $1,310,000.00.

Lifeway Foods Stock Performance

Shares of NASDAQ:LWAY traded up $1.12 during trading on Friday, hitting $25.82. 435,341 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 134,036. The company’s fifty day simple moving average is $29.01 and its 200-day simple moving average is $25.03. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.08, a quick ratio of 1.56 and a current ratio of 2.14. The company has a market capitalization of $394.53 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of 36.89 and a beta of 0.44. Lifeway Foods, Inc. has a 1-year low of $17.31 and a 1-year high of $34.20.

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

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of LWAY. Gamco Investors INC. ET AL boosted its stake in Lifeway Foods by 33.5% in the first quarter. Gamco Investors INC. ET AL now owns 214,650 shares of the company’s stock valued at $4,151,000 after acquiring an additional 53,900 shares during the last quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP lifted its stake in shares of Lifeway Foods by 8.8% in the 1st quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 235,710 shares of the company’s stock valued at $4,558,000 after purchasing an additional 19,035 shares during the period. Steadtrust LLC bought a new position in shares of Lifeway Foods in the 2nd quarter worth $477,000. Carlson Capital L.P. acquired a new stake in shares of Lifeway Foods during the first quarter worth $193,000. Finally, Vivaldi Capital Management LP bought a new stake in Lifeway Foods in the first quarter valued at about $213,000. 36.39% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research analysts recently issued reports on LWAY shares. Benchmark reissued a “buy” rating on shares of Lifeway Foods in a research report on Monday, June 15th. Weiss Ratings lowered Lifeway Foods from a “buy (b-)” rating to a “hold (c)” rating in a research note on Thursday. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Buy rating and one has issued a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, Lifeway Foods currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target 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.