Insider Selling: Lifeway Foods, Inc. (NASDAQ:LWAY) Major Shareholder Sells 30,000 Shares of Stock

Lifeway Foods, Inc. (NASDAQ:LWAY) major shareholder Ludmila Smolyansky sold 30,000 shares of Lifeway Foods stock in a transaction dated Monday, January 13th. The shares were sold at an average price of $22.24, for a total transaction of $667,200.00. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now owns 995,549 shares in the company, valued at approximately $22,141,009.76. This represents a 2.93 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Large shareholders that own at least 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 Monday, January 6th, Ludmila Smolyansky sold 45,000 shares of Lifeway Foods stock. The shares were sold at an average price of $23.49, for a total transaction of $1,057,050.00.
• On Friday, January 3rd, Ludmila Smolyansky sold 15,000 shares of Lifeway Foods stock. The stock was sold at an average price of $24.12, for a total value of $361,800.00.

Lifeway Foods Price Performance

NASDAQ LWAY opened at $22.70 on Thursday. Lifeway Foods, Inc. has a 12 month low of $9.93 and a 12 month high of $28.61. The firm has a market capitalization of $336.32 million, a PE ratio of 26.40 and a beta of 1.02. The company’s 50 day simple moving average is $23.84 and its 200 day simple moving average is $21.01.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Lifeway Foods

Hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the company. BNP Paribas Financial Markets boosted its stake in Lifeway Foods by 71.2% during the third quarter. BNP Paribas Financial Markets now owns 2,778 shares of the company’s stock valued at $72,000 after buying an additional 1,155 shares in the last quarter. Barclays PLC lifted its holdings in Lifeway Foods by 40.5% in the 3rd quarter. Barclays PLC now owns 6,420 shares of the company’s stock valued at $167,000 after acquiring an additional 1,849 shares during the last quarter. Covestor Ltd bought a new position in shares of Lifeway Foods during the 3rd quarter valued at about $50,000. Geode Capital Management LLC grew its stake in shares of Lifeway Foods by 1.8% in the 3rd quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 115,971 shares of the company’s stock worth $3,006,000 after purchasing an additional 2,018 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Rhumbline Advisers raised its holdings in shares of Lifeway Foods by 2,334.0% in the 2nd quarter. Rhumbline Advisers now owns 4,868 shares of the company’s stock worth $62,000 after purchasing an additional 4,668 shares in the last quarter. 36.39% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research analysts have issued reports on the company. Noble Financial lowered Lifeway Foods from an “outperform” rating to a “market perform” rating in a research report on Tuesday, September 24th. StockNews.com started coverage on shares of Lifeway Foods in a report on Thursday, January 9th. They issued a “hold” rating for the company.

Lifeway Foods Company 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.