De Lisle Partners LLP Invests $1.81 Million in Lifeway Foods, Inc. $LWAY

De Lisle Partners LLP purchased a new stake in Lifeway Foods, Inc. (NASDAQ:LWAY - Free Report) in the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund purchased 60,732 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $1,814,000. De Lisle Partners LLP owned approximately 0.40% of Lifeway Foods as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Strs Ohio bought a new position in Lifeway Foods in the 1st quarter worth about $90,000. Rhumbline Advisers increased its position in shares of Lifeway Foods by 8.2% during the first quarter. Rhumbline Advisers now owns 6,068 shares of the company's stock valued at $148,000 after buying an additional 462 shares during the period. Geode Capital Management LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Lifeway Foods by 6.6% in the second quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 124,726 shares of the company's stock worth $3,075,000 after buying an additional 7,718 shares in the last quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted its position in shares of Lifeway Foods by 293.6% in the second quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 13,472 shares of the company's stock valued at $332,000 after acquiring an additional 10,049 shares during the period. Finally, First Trust Advisors LP boosted its position in shares of Lifeway Foods by 6.8% in the second quarter. First Trust Advisors LP now owns 17,178 shares of the company's stock valued at $423,000 after acquiring an additional 1,091 shares during the period. 36.39% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, major shareholder Divisadero Street Capital Mana acquired 195,616 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Thursday, August 13th. The shares were purchased at an average price of $24.87 per share, for a total transaction of $4,864,969.92. Following the transaction, the insider owned 2,297,156 shares in the company, valued at $57,130,269.72. This represents a 9.31% increase in their position. The acquisition was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, major shareholder Edward Smolyansky sold 111,548 shares of Lifeway Foods stock in a transaction on Friday, June 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $29.26, for a total transaction of $3,263,894.48. Following the sale, the insider directly owned 902,642 shares of the company's stock, valued at $26,411,304.92. This represents a 11.00% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. In the last quarter, insiders purchased 248,568 shares of company stock valued at $6,176,730 and sold 592,698 shares valued at $17,070,367. Corporate insiders own 18.58% of the company's stock.

Lifeway Foods Stock Performance

Shares of LWAY opened at $25.93 on Friday. Lifeway Foods, Inc. has a 12-month low of $17.31 and a 12-month high of $34.20. The company has a current ratio of 2.09, a quick ratio of 1.47 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.26. The company has a market cap of $391.80 million, a PE ratio of 37.04 and a beta of 0.44. The stock has a 50-day moving average price of $29.12 and a 200-day moving average price of $25.16.

Lifeway Foods (NASDAQ:LWAY - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, August 13th. The company reported $0.01 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.26 by ($0.25). The company 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 Analyst Weigh In

Several equities analysts recently commented on LWAY shares. Weiss Ratings cut shares of Lifeway Foods from a "buy (b-)" rating to a "hold (c)" rating in a research note on Thursday, August 13th. Benchmark reiterated a "buy" rating on shares of Lifeway Foods in a research note on Monday, June 15th. BTIG Research started coverage on shares of Lifeway Foods in a report on Thursday. They issued a "buy" rating and a $32.00 price target for the company. Freedom Capital upgraded shares of Lifeway Foods from a "hold" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a research report on Friday, August 14th. Finally, Wall Street Zen cut shares of Lifeway Foods from a "hold" rating to a "sell" rating in a report on Saturday, August 15th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, two have given a Buy rating and one has issued a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of "Buy" and an average target price of $34.00.

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.

Want to see what other hedge funds are holding LWAY? Visit HoldingsChannel.com to get the latest 13F filings and insider trades for Lifeway Foods, Inc. (NASDAQ:LWAY - Free Report).

This instant news alert was generated by narrative science technology and financial data from MarketBeat in order to provide readers with the fastest reporting and unbiased coverage. Please send any questions or comments about this story to contact@marketbeat.com.

Continue following MarketBeat

Add MarketBeat as your preferred source on Google to see our latest stories in your feed.

Add As Preferred Source