Lifeway Foods (NASDAQ:LWAY) Upgraded to "Buy" at Wall Street Zen

Key Points

• Lifeway Foods' stock rating has been upgraded from "hold" to "buy" by Wall Street Zen, indicating positive sentiment from analysts.
• Lake Street Capital also reaffirmed their "buy" rating and increased the target price for Lifeway Foods from $30.00 to $33.00.
• Insider trading activity includes significant sales, with CEO Julie Smolyansky selling 50,000 shares, decreasing her ownership stake by 2.29%.

Lifeway Foods (NASDAQ:LWAY - Get Free Report) was upgraded by equities research analysts at Wall Street Zen from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a report released on Saturday.

Separately, Lake Street Capital raised their price target on Lifeway Foods from $30.00 to $33.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Wednesday, August 13th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Buy rating and one has given a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Lifeway Foods presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $29.00.

Lifeway Foods Price Performance

Shares of LWAY remained flat at $30.59 during trading hours on Friday. The company had a trading volume of 35,626 shares, compared to its average volume of 77,736. The company has a market cap of $465.89 million, a PE ratio of 44.33 and a beta of 0.69. Lifeway Foods has a fifty-two week low of $17.82 and a fifty-two week high of $31.40. The company's fifty day moving average price is $26.09 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $24.00.

Lifeway Foods (NASDAQ:LWAY - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, August 12th. The company reported $0.28 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $0.18 by $0.10. The business had revenue of $53.90 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $54.00 million. Lifeway Foods had a return on equity of 14.32% and a net margin of 5.49%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Lifeway Foods

In other news, Director Jason Scott Scher sold 16,366 shares of Lifeway Foods stock in a transaction dated Friday, June 27th. The stock was sold at an average price of $24.24, for a total value of $396,711.84. Following the transaction, the director directly owned 1 shares of the company's stock, valued at $24.24. The trade was a 99.99% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this link. Over the last quarter, insiders sold 25,366 shares of company stock valued at $613,556. Insiders own 18.86% of the company's stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Lifeway Foods

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of LWAY. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted its stake in shares of Lifeway Foods by 712.8% in the 4th quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 85,959 shares of the company's stock valued at $2,132,000 after purchasing an additional 75,383 shares in the last quarter. Wells Fargo & Company MN lifted its stake in shares of Lifeway Foods by 33.6% in the 4th quarter. Wells Fargo & Company MN now owns 2,855 shares of the company's stock valued at $71,000 after purchasing an additional 718 shares in the last quarter. Bank of Montreal Can acquired a new position in shares of Lifeway Foods in the 4th quarter valued at about $388,000. Barclays PLC lifted its stake in shares of Lifeway Foods by 11.0% in the 4th quarter. Barclays PLC now owns 7,127 shares of the company's stock valued at $176,000 after purchasing an additional 707 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Gabelli Funds LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Lifeway Foods during the 4th quarter valued at about $403,000. 36.39% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

About Lifeway Foods

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.