Lifeway Foods (LWAY) Competitors

TreeHouse Foods (NYSE:THS) and Lifeway Foods (NASDAQ:LWAY) are both small-cap consumer staples companies, but which is the superior investment? We will compare the two businesses based on the strength of their profitability, dividends, media sentiment, institutional ownership, valuation, risk, analyst recommendations and earnings.

Does the media refer more to THS or LWAY?

In the previous week, Lifeway Foods had 7 more articles in the media than TreeHouse Foods. MarketBeat recorded 19 mentions for Lifeway Foods and 12 mentions for TreeHouse Foods. TreeHouse Foods' average media sentiment score of 0.79 beat Lifeway Foods' score of 0.55 indicating that TreeHouse Foods is being referred to more favorably in the media.

Company	Very Positive	Positive	Neutral	Negative	Very Negative	Overall Sentiment
TreeHouse Foods	6 Very Positive mention(s)	1 Positive mention(s)	3 Neutral mention(s)	2 Negative mention(s)	0 Very Negative mention(s)	Positive
Lifeway Foods	2 Very Positive mention(s)	3 Positive mention(s)	11 Neutral mention(s)	0 Negative mention(s)	0 Very Negative mention(s)	Positive

Do institutionals and insiders believe in THS or LWAY?

99.8% of TreeHouse Foods shares are held by institutional investors. Comparatively, 36.4% of Lifeway Foods shares are held by institutional investors. 11.1% of TreeHouse Foods shares are held by company insiders. Comparatively, 18.9% of Lifeway Foods shares are held by company insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that hedge funds, large money managers and endowments believe a company will outperform the market over the long term.

Is THS or LWAY more profitable?

Lifeway Foods has a net margin of 5.49% compared to TreeHouse Foods' net margin of 0.62%. Lifeway Foods' return on equity of 14.32% beat TreeHouse Foods' return on equity.

Company	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
TreeHouse Foods	0.62%	6.35%	2.45%
Lifeway Foods	5.49%	14.32%	11.35%

Do analysts recommend THS or LWAY?

TreeHouse Foods presently has a consensus price target of $24.00, indicating a potential upside of 25.57%. Lifeway Foods has a consensus price target of $29.00, indicating a potential downside of 3.30%. Given TreeHouse Foods' higher possible upside, research analysts plainly believe TreeHouse Foods is more favorable than Lifeway Foods.

Company	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
TreeHouse Foods	0 Sell rating(s)	7 Hold rating(s)	0 Buy rating(s)	0 Strong Buy rating(s)	2.00
Lifeway Foods	0 Sell rating(s)	1 Hold rating(s)	1 Buy rating(s)	0 Strong Buy rating(s)	2.50

Which has more risk & volatility, THS or LWAY?

TreeHouse Foods has a beta of 0.25, indicating that its stock price is 75% less volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, Lifeway Foods has a beta of 0.69, indicating that its stock price is 31% less volatile than the S&P 500.

Which has preferable earnings and valuation, THS or LWAY?

TreeHouse Foods has higher revenue and earnings than Lifeway Foods. Lifeway Foods is trading at a lower price-to-earnings ratio than TreeHouse Foods, indicating that it is currently the more affordable of the two stocks.

Company	Gross Revenue	Price/Sales Ratio	Net Income	Earnings Per Share	Price/Earnings Ratio
TreeHouse Foods	$3.35B	0.29	$26.90M	$0.39	49.01
Lifeway Foods	$186.82M	2.44	$9.02M	$0.69	43.46

Summary

Lifeway Foods beats TreeHouse Foods on 10 of the 16 factors compared between the two stocks.