Lifeway Foods (NASDAQ:LWAY) Lowered to Market Perform at Noble Financial

Lifeway Foods (NASDAQ:LWAY) was downgraded by equities research analysts at Noble Financial from an “outperform” rating to a “market perform” rating in a research note issued to investors on Tuesday, Briefing.com reports.

Separately, StockNews.com downgraded shares of Lifeway Foods from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Sunday, September 8th.

Lifeway Foods Price Performance

NASDAQ:LWAY opened at $21.50 on Tuesday. Lifeway Foods has a one year low of $9.06 and a one year high of $28.61. The company has a market cap of $316.20 million, a PE ratio of 25.00 and a beta of 1.02. The firm has a 50-day moving average of $16.74 and a 200-day moving average of $16.67.

Lifeway Foods (NASDAQ:LWAY) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, August 13th. The company reported $0.25 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.17 by $0.08. The firm had revenue of $49.16 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $46.50 million. Lifeway Foods had a return on equity of 21.92% and a net margin of 7.69%. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $0.21 earnings per share. On average, equities research analysts expect that Lifeway Foods will post 0.99 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Lifeway Foods news, VP Amy M. Feldman sold 12,948 shares of Lifeway Foods stock in a transaction on Friday, August 16th. The shares were sold at an average price of $18.57, for a total transaction of $240,444.36. Following the transaction, the vice president now directly owns 18,104 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $336,191.28. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. In related news, VP Amy M. Feldman sold 12,948 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, August 16th. The shares were sold at an average price of $18.57, for a total value of $240,444.36. Following the transaction, the vice president now directly owns 18,104 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $336,191.28. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Also, major shareholder Ludmila Smolyansky sold 4,584 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, September 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $19.55, for a total transaction of $89,617.20. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now directly owns 1,085,549 shares in the company, valued at $21,222,482.95. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 52,698 shares of company stock valued at $887,612 in the last three months. 31.77% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Lifeway Foods

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Rhumbline Advisers boosted its holdings in shares of Lifeway Foods by 2,334.0% in the 2nd quarter. Rhumbline Advisers now owns 4,868 shares of the company’s stock worth $62,000 after buying an additional 4,668 shares during the last quarter. Quest Partners LLC purchased a new stake in Lifeway Foods during the second quarter valued at about $82,000. Hillsdale Investment Management Inc. lifted its holdings in Lifeway Foods by 4.8% during the first quarter. Hillsdale Investment Management Inc. now owns 246,480 shares of the company’s stock valued at $4,244,000 after purchasing an additional 11,383 shares during the last quarter. Bailard Inc. purchased a new stake in Lifeway Foods during the second quarter valued at about $253,000. Finally, Panagora Asset Management Inc. purchased a new stake in Lifeway Foods during the second quarter valued at about $267,000. 36.39% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Lifeway Foods Company Profile

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.