Divisadero Street Capital Mana Purchases 35,952 Shares of Lifeway Foods (NASDAQ:LWAY) Stock

Lifeway Foods, Inc. (NASDAQ:LWAY) major shareholder Divisadero Street Capital Mana purchased 35,952 shares of Lifeway Foods stock in a transaction dated Monday, August 17th. The stock was acquired at an average price of $24.78 per share, for a total transaction of $890,890.56. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider owned 2,348,108 shares in the company, valued at approximately $58,186,116.24. The trade was a 1.55% increase in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Major shareholders that own 10% or more of a company’s stock are required to disclose their sales and purchases with the SEC.

Divisadero Street Capital Mana also recently made the following trade(s):

• On Friday, August 14th, Divisadero Street Capital Mana purchased 15,000 shares of Lifeway Foods stock. The stock was acquired at an average cost of $24.69 per share, with a total value of $370,350.00.
• On Thursday, August 13th, Divisadero Street Capital Mana acquired 195,616 shares of Lifeway Foods stock. The shares were acquired at an average cost of $24.87 per share, with a total value of $4,864,969.92.

Lifeway Foods Price Performance

LWAY opened at $25.45 on Wednesday. The firm has a market cap of $384.47 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of 36.36 and a beta of 0.44. Lifeway Foods, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $17.31 and a fifty-two week high of $34.20. The company’s 50-day moving average price is $29.06 and its 200 day moving average price is $25.10. The company has a quick ratio of 1.47, a current ratio of 2.09 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.26.

Lifeway Foods (NASDAQ:LWAY) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, August 13th. The company reported $0.01 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.26 by ($0.25). The business had revenue of $66.89 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $61.40 million. Lifeway Foods had a return on equity of 12.66% and a net margin of 4.48%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research analysts recently issued reports on LWAY shares. Wall Street Zen lowered Lifeway Foods from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a research report on Saturday. Freedom Capital raised Lifeway Foods from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Friday, August 14th. Benchmark reiterated a “buy” rating on shares of Lifeway Foods in a research note on Monday, June 15th. Finally, Weiss Ratings cut Lifeway Foods from a “buy (b-)” rating to a “hold (c)” rating in a research note on Thursday, August 13th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, one has given a Buy rating and one has given a Hold rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Lifeway Foods currently has an average rating of “Buy” and a consensus target price of $35.00.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Lifeway Foods

Several institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. BlackRock Inc. acquired a new position in Lifeway Foods during the 2nd quarter valued at about $9,614,000. Pillsbury Lake Capital LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Lifeway Foods in the 2nd quarter worth approximately $8,704,597,000. 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 worth $4,558,000 after acquiring an additional 19,035 shares during the period. AWM Investment Company Inc. bought a new position in shares of Lifeway Foods in the second quarter valued at approximately $6,654,000. Finally, Gamco Investors INC. ET AL boosted its holdings in shares of 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 in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds 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.