Lifeway Foods, Inc. (NASDAQ:LWAY – Get Free Report) saw a large increase in short interest in the month of May. As of May 15th, there was short interest totaling 1,030,606 shares, an increase of 255.8% from the April 30th total of 289,632 shares. Currently, 8.3% of the company’s stock are short sold. Based on an average daily volume of 176,614 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is presently 5.8 days.
Lifeway Foods Trading Down 0.7%
Shares of LWAY traded down $0.18 during mid-day trading on Friday, reaching $23.85. 22,185 shares of the company’s stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 78,563. The stock has a market cap of $364.35 million, a P/E ratio of 24.58 and a beta of 0.53. The stock’s 50-day moving average is $23.77 and its two-hundred day moving average is $22.97. Lifeway Foods has a 12 month low of $17.31 and a 12 month high of $34.20. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.08, a current ratio of 2.14 and a quick ratio of 1.56.
Lifeway Foods (NASDAQ:LWAY – Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Thursday, May 14th. The company reported $0.30 EPS for the quarter, meeting analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.30. Lifeway Foods had a return on equity of 17.76% and a net margin of 6.54%.The firm had revenue of $63.01 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $60.80 million.
Analyst Ratings Changes
Get Our Latest Stock Analysis on LWAY
Insider Transactions at Lifeway Foods
In other Lifeway Foods news, major shareholder Edward Smolyansky sold 25,000 shares of Lifeway Foods stock in a transaction on Thursday, May 14th. The stock was sold at an average price of $25.34, for a total transaction of $633,500.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider owned 1,076,642 shares in the company, valued at approximately $27,282,108.28. The trade was a 2.27% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, major shareholder Divisadero Street Capital Mana acquired 131,871 shares of the stock in a transaction on Thursday, May 14th. The shares were bought at an average price of $25.50 per share, with a total value of $3,362,710.50. Following the purchase, the insider directly owned 2,068,366 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $52,743,333. The trade was a 6.81% increase in their position. The disclosure for this purchase is available in the SEC filing. In the last quarter, insiders have sold 3,598,756 shares of company stock worth $70,654,047. 18.86% of the stock is owned by company insiders.
Institutional Trading of Lifeway Foods
A number of hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Larson Financial Group LLC acquired a new position in shares of Lifeway Foods in the third quarter worth $31,000. BNP Paribas Financial Markets boosted its stake in Lifeway Foods by 577.3% in the second quarter. BNP Paribas Financial Markets now owns 1,551 shares of the company’s stock valued at $38,000 after acquiring an additional 1,322 shares in the last quarter. Raymond James Financial Inc. acquired a new position in Lifeway Foods in the second quarter valued at $40,000. New York State Common Retirement Fund boosted its stake in Lifeway Foods by 433.3% in the third quarter. New York State Common Retirement Fund now owns 1,600 shares of the company’s stock valued at $44,000 after acquiring an additional 1,300 shares in the last quarter. Finally, State of Alaska Department of Revenue boosted its stake in Lifeway Foods by 302.0% in the fourth quarter. State of Alaska Department of Revenue now owns 2,967 shares of the company’s stock valued at $71,000 after acquiring an additional 2,229 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 36.39% of the company’s stock.
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.
Featured Stories
- Five stocks we like better than Lifeway Foods
- Shares Fall, Targets Rise—Markets and Analysts Diverge on Synopsys
- Salesforce Stock Finds Support as AI Momentum Builds
- Dollar Tree Keeps Winning After Family Dollar Divorce
- Apple’s Agentic AI Plans Could Be Its Biggest Growth Story Yet
Receive News & Ratings for Lifeway Foods Daily - Enter your email address below to receive a concise daily summary of the latest news and analysts' ratings for Lifeway Foods and related companies with MarketBeat.com's FREE daily email newsletter.
