Lifeway Foods, Inc. (NASDAQ:LWAY) Sees Significant Drop in Short Interest

Lifeway Foods, Inc. (NASDAQ:LWAY - Get Free Report) saw a significant decrease in short interest in the month of September. As of September 30th, there was short interest totalling 264,800 shares, a decrease of 40.2% from the September 15th total of 442,600 shares. Based on an average trading volume of 171,600 shares, the short-interest ratio is presently 1.5 days. Currently, 5.7% of the company's shares are short sold.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, CFO Eric A. Hanson sold 5,546 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Friday, August 16th. The shares were sold at an average price of $18.91, for a total value of $104,874.86. Following the sale, the chief financial officer now directly owns 25,546 shares in the company, valued at approximately $483,074.86. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. In other news, major shareholder Ludmila Smolyansky sold 14,620 shares of Lifeway Foods stock in a transaction on Wednesday, July 24th. The stock was sold at an average price of $12.30, for a total value of $179,826.00. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now directly owns 1,125,133 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $13,839,135.90. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, CFO Eric A. Hanson sold 5,546 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Friday, August 16th. The stock was sold at an average price of $18.91, for a total value of $104,874.86. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer now directly owns 25,546 shares in the company, valued at approximately $483,074.86. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last three months, insiders sold 52,698 shares of company stock worth $887,612. Company insiders own 18.86% of the company's stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Lifeway Foods

Institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Rhumbline Advisers raised its holdings in Lifeway Foods by 2,334.0% during the second 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. Quest Partners LLC acquired a new stake in Lifeway Foods during the 2nd quarter worth $82,000. Hillsdale Investment Management Inc. lifted its position in Lifeway Foods by 4.8% in the first quarter. Hillsdale Investment Management Inc. now owns 246,480 shares of the company's stock valued at $4,244,000 after acquiring an additional 11,383 shares during the last quarter. Bailard Inc. purchased a new stake in Lifeway Foods in the second quarter valued at $253,000. Finally, Panagora Asset Management Inc. acquired a new position in Lifeway Foods in the second quarter valued at $267,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 36.39% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several analysts have recently issued reports on the stock. Noble Financial cut shares of Lifeway Foods from an "outperform" rating to a "market perform" rating in a research report on Tuesday, September 24th. StockNews.com cut shares of Lifeway Foods from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Sunday, September 8th.

Lifeway Foods Price Performance

Shares of LWAY remained flat at $26.63 during midday trading on Friday. The stock had a trading volume of 64,679 shares, compared to its average volume of 151,442. Lifeway Foods has a fifty-two week low of $9.06 and a fifty-two week high of $28.61. The firm has a market capitalization of $393.86 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of 29.59 and a beta of 1.04. The company has a 50-day moving average price of $20.40 and a 200-day moving average price of $17.89.

Lifeway Foods (NASDAQ:LWAY - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, August 13th. The company reported $0.25 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $0.17 by $0.08. The company had revenue of $49.16 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $46.50 million. Lifeway Foods had a net margin of 7.69% and a return on equity of 21.92%. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm earned $0.21 earnings per share. On average, analysts anticipate that Lifeway Foods will post 0.99 EPS for the current year.

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.