Lifeway Foods (NASDAQ:LWAY) Stock Passes Above 200-Day Moving Average - Here's What Happened

Key Points

• Lifeway Foods shares moved above their 200-day moving average on Thursday, trading as high as $32.71 before last changing hands at $32.09. The move came on volume of 71,278 shares.
• Recent analyst activity has been mixed, but the overall view remains Moderate Buy with a consensus target price of $34.33. Benchmark reiterated a buy rating, while Weiss Ratings and Wall Street Zen made less bullish adjustments.
• The company recently reported Q1 earnings that matched EPS estimates at $0.30 and beat revenue expectations with $63.01 million in sales. However, insiders have also been selling shares, including major shareholder transactions in late June and early July.

Shares of Lifeway Foods, Inc. (NASDAQ:LWAY - Get Free Report) passed above its 200-day moving average during trading on Thursday . The stock has a 200-day moving average of $23.97 and traded as high as $32.71. Lifeway Foods shares last traded at $32.09, with a volume of 71,278 shares traded.

Analyst Ratings Changes

LWAY has been the subject of a number of recent analyst reports. Weiss Ratings raised Lifeway Foods from a "hold (c)" rating to a "hold (c+)" rating in a report on Thursday, May 14th. Benchmark restated a "buy" rating on shares of Lifeway Foods in a report on Monday, June 15th. Finally, Wall Street Zen downgraded Lifeway Foods from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Saturday, March 21st. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and one has assigned a Hold rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $34.33.

Lifeway Foods Trading Up 2.2%

The stock has a market capitalization of $490.34 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of 33.08 and a beta of 0.45. 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 firm has a fifty day moving average of $26.74 and a 200-day moving average of $23.97.

Lifeway Foods (NASDAQ:LWAY - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, May 14th. The company reported $0.30 EPS for the quarter, hitting the consensus estimate 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 analyst estimates of $60.80 million.

Insider Transactions at Lifeway Foods

In other news, major shareholder Ludmila Smolyansky sold 45,616 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, June 25th. The stock was sold at an average price of $29.65, for a total transaction of $1,352,514.40. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider directly owned 607,207 shares in the company, valued at approximately $18,003,687.55. This represents a 6.99% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, major shareholder Edward Smolyansky sold 39,098 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Tuesday, July 7th. The stock was sold at an average price of $29.41, for a total transaction of $1,149,872.18. Following the transaction, the insider directly owned 1,071,709 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $31,518,961.69. This represents a 3.52% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Over the last ninety days, insiders have sold 3,921,454 shares of company stock valued at $80,633,139. 18.58% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of large investors have recently bought and sold shares of LWAY. Larson Financial Group LLC bought a new position in Lifeway Foods during the third quarter worth $31,000. BNP Paribas Financial Markets grew its position in shares of Lifeway Foods by 577.3% during the second quarter. BNP Paribas Financial Markets now owns 1,551 shares of the company's stock worth $38,000 after acquiring an additional 1,322 shares during the last quarter. Raymond James Financial Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Lifeway Foods in the 2nd quarter worth about $40,000. State of Alaska Department of Revenue lifted its position in Lifeway Foods by 302.0% in the 4th quarter. State of Alaska Department of Revenue now owns 2,967 shares of the company's stock valued at $71,000 after purchasing an additional 2,229 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Strs Ohio bought a new stake in shares of Lifeway Foods during the first quarter valued at approximately $90,000. Institutional investors own 36.39% of the company's stock.

Lifeway Foods Company Profile

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.

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