Lifeway Foods (NASDAQ:LWAY) Issues Earnings Results, Misses Estimates By $0.13 EPS

19 Mar 2026, 12:36 by Mitch Edgeman · The Markets Daily

Lifeway Foods (NASDAQ:LWAY – Get Free Report) posted its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday. The company reported $0.16 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.29 by ($0.13), FiscalAI reports. The company had revenue of $55.36 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $55.00 million. Lifeway Foods had a net margin of 6.52% and a return on equity of 17.65%.

Here are the key takeaways from Lifeway Foods’ conference call:

Lifeway delivered record 2025 net sales of $212.5 million (up 13.7% YoY; ~19% on a comparable basis) and a strong Q4 with sales of $55.4 million, marking the 25th consecutive quarter of year‑over‑year sales growth.
Profitability expanded materially — full‑year gross margin rose 140 basis points to 27.4%, Q4 gross margin reached 27.8% (+250 bps), and net income increased 54% to $13.9 million.
Management is scaling capacity with a $45 million Waukesha expansion (Phase 2 ribbon cutting completed) targeting double manufacturing capacity by end of 2026, and reiterated a long‑term $45–$50 million Adjusted EBITDA target for 2027.
The company is broadening distribution and innovation — Lifeway Farmer Cheese reached 2,000 Walmart stores, new products (Kefir Butter, Mulu Mates, probiotic smoothies) launched, and a licensing deal with Open Farm enters pet nutrition — while SG&A rose modestly as a percentage of sales due to growth investments.

Lifeway Foods Trading Down 3.8%

Shares of LWAY opened at $18.49 on Thursday. The business’s fifty day simple moving average is $21.74 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $24.30. Lifeway Foods has a 12 month low of $18.42 and a 12 month high of $34.20. The company has a market cap of $281.60 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of 20.54 and a beta of 0.13.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, major shareholder Ludmila Smolyansky sold 26,431 shares of the stock in a transaction on Tuesday, December 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $24.42, for a total transaction of $645,445.02. Following the sale, the insider directly owned 757,823 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $18,506,037.66. This trade represents a 3.37% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Also, major shareholder Edward Smolyansky sold 22,313 shares of the stock in a transaction on Tuesday, March 17th. The shares were sold at an average price of $20.10, for a total value of $448,491.30. Following the sale, the insider directly owned 1,115,995 shares in the company, valued at $22,431,499.50. This trade represents a 1.96% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. In the last three months, insiders sold 62,078 shares of company stock valued at $1,368,617. Corporate 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 bought and sold shares of LWAY. Susquehanna Portfolio Strategies LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Lifeway Foods during the 4th quarter valued at about $258,000. Tudor Investment Corp ET AL raised its holdings in shares of Lifeway Foods by 73.0% during the fourth quarter. Tudor Investment Corp ET AL now owns 163,361 shares of the company’s stock valued at $3,958,000 after purchasing an additional 68,956 shares during the last quarter. Millennium Management LLC raised its holdings in shares of Lifeway Foods by 266.3% during the fourth quarter. Millennium Management LLC now owns 57,545 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,394,000 after purchasing an additional 41,836 shares during the last quarter. Man Group plc bought a new position in Lifeway Foods during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $206,000. Finally, Inspire Investing LLC lifted its position in Lifeway Foods by 18.5% during the fourth quarter. Inspire Investing LLC now owns 19,585 shares of the company’s stock valued at $475,000 after purchasing an additional 3,062 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 36.39% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities research analysts have recently commented on LWAY shares. Wall Street Zen raised Lifeway Foods from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Saturday, February 14th. Morgan Stanley set a $35.00 price target on Lifeway Foods in a research report on Wednesday, January 14th. Benchmark reiterated a “buy” rating on shares of Lifeway Foods in a research note on Wednesday, January 14th. Finally, Weiss Ratings reissued a “hold (c)” rating on shares of Lifeway Foods in a research report on Monday, December 29th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and one has assigned a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Lifeway Foods presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $34.33.

Check Out Our Latest Stock Analysis on Lifeway Foods

About Lifeway Foods

(Get Free Report)

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.