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

Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of Lifeway Foods (NASDAQ:LWAY) from a hold rating to a buy rating in a research report report published on Saturday.

LWAY has been the topic of a number of other reports. Morgan Stanley set a $35.00 price target on Lifeway Foods in a research note on Wednesday, January 14th. Benchmark restated a “buy” rating on shares of Lifeway Foods in a research report on Wednesday, January 14th. Finally, Weiss Ratings restated a “hold (c)” rating on shares of Lifeway Foods in a report on Monday, December 29th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and one has given a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $34.33.

Lifeway Foods Stock Up 0.5%

NASDAQ LWAY opened at $21.98 on Friday. Lifeway Foods has a 52 week low of $19.50 and a 52 week high of $34.20. The firm has a 50 day moving average of $22.65 and a two-hundred day moving average of $25.51. The stock has a market capitalization of $334.76 million, a PE ratio of 30.11 and a beta of 0.11.

Insider Activity

In other news, major shareholder Ludmila Smolyansky sold 26,431 shares of Lifeway Foods stock in a transaction on Tuesday, December 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $24.42, for a total value of $645,445.02. Following the transaction, the insider directly owned 757,823 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $18,506,037.66. The trade was a 3.37% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Insiders have sold 75,000 shares of company stock worth $1,779,895 in the last 90 days. Company insiders own 18.86% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the business. Larson Financial Group LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Lifeway Foods in the third quarter valued at about $31,000. BNP Paribas Financial Markets increased its position in Lifeway Foods by 577.3% in the 2nd quarter. BNP Paribas Financial Markets now owns 1,551 shares of the company’s stock valued at $38,000 after acquiring an additional 1,322 shares during the period. New York State Common Retirement Fund raised its stake in Lifeway Foods by 433.3% during the 3rd quarter. New York State Common Retirement Fund now owns 1,600 shares of the company’s stock valued at $44,000 after acquiring an additional 1,300 shares during the last quarter. Raymond James Financial Inc. acquired a new stake in Lifeway Foods during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $40,000. Finally, State of Alaska Department of Revenue lifted its position in Lifeway Foods by 302.0% during the 4th quarter. State of Alaska Department of Revenue now owns 2,967 shares of the company’s stock worth $71,000 after acquiring an additional 2,229 shares during the period. 36.39% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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.