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Lifeway Foods
(NASDAQ:LWAY)
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Rating:56Neutral
Price Target:
$23.00
▼(-12.71% Downside)
Action:Reiterated
Date:09/13/26
The score is primarily limited by weakened cash generation (materially negative recent free cash flow) and increased leverage, despite strong multi-year revenue growth and improved earnings versus earlier periods. Technicals add pressure due to a downtrend and negative MACD, while valuation appears relatively rich at ~34x earnings with no dividend support. Corporate events are slightly positive, reflecting funded investment and stable governance, but do not fully offset cash flow and momentum risks.
Positive Factors
Strong Revenue Growth
Sustained revenue expansion indicates solid demand for Lifeway’s cultured and probiotic products and suggests the brand is gaining market reach. Continued top-line growth can support operating leverage, broader distribution, and reinvestment in products and capacity over the next several quarters.
Negative Factors
Deteriorating Free Cash Flow
The sharp move to materially negative free cash flow means Lifeway is not currently converting earnings into cash after investment spending. Unless recent expenditures generate sufficient returns, the company may need to rely more heavily on financing and could face reduced flexibility for future expansion.
Read all positive and negative factors
Positive Factors
Negative Factors
Strong Revenue Growth
Sustained revenue expansion indicates solid demand for Lifeway’s cultured and probiotic products and suggests the brand is gaining market reach. Continued top-line growth can support operating leverage, broader distribution, and reinvestment in products and capacity over the next several quarters.
Read all positive factors
Lifeway Foods (LWAY) vs. SPDR S&P 500 ETF (SPY)
Market Cap
$339.30M
Dividend Yield<0.01%
Average Volume (3M)146.27K
Price to Earnings (P/E)31.3
Beta (1Y)0.38
Revenue Growth25.59%
EPS Growth1.38%
CountryUS
Employees293
SectorConsumer Defensive
Sector Strength42
IndustryPackaged Foods
Share Statistics
EPS (TTM)0.72
Shares Outstanding15,106,747
10 Day Avg. Volume100,334
30 Day Avg. Volume146,274
Financial Highlights & Ratios
PEG Ratio0.54
Price to Book (P/B)4.29
Price to Sales (P/S)1.73
P/FCF Ratio-22.44
Enterprise Value/Market Cap1.39
Enterprise Value/Revenue1.95
Enterprise Value/Gross Profit7.48
Enterprise Value/Ebitda23.71
Forecast
1Y Price Target
$32.00Price Target Upside21.44% Upside
Rating ConsensusModerate Buy
Number of Analyst Covering1
EPS Forecast (FY)0.52
Revenue Forecast (FY)$262.60M
Lifeway Foods Business Overview & Revenue Model
Company Description
Lifeway Foods, Inc. manufactures and distributes a variety of probiotic-rich goods, serving both the United States and international markets. Its principal offering is drinkable kefir, a fermented dairy item available in numerous forms, including ...
How the Company Makes Money
Lifeway makes money primarily by manufacturing and selling cultured dairy products—most notably drinkable kefir—under its branded portfolio, with net sales recognized when products are delivered to customers (generally retailers, distributors, and...
Lifeway Foods Earnings Call Summary
Earnings Call Date:May 14, 2026
(Q1-2026)
| % Change Since: |
Next Earnings Date:Nov 16, 2026
Earnings Call Sentiment Positive
The call presented a strongly positive quarter highlighted by record revenue (+36.7% YoY), significant margin expansion (+360 bps), and 32% net income growth, supported by volume-led growth from core products, successful marketing (10M+ ad views), product innovation, and an on-track capacity expansion. Notable cautions included higher absolute SG&A spending (+16.8%), increasingly difficult year-over-year comps as the company laps 2025 distribution gains, and sensitivity of margin gains to favorable milk pricing. On balance the positive operational and financial results and clear growth initiatives outweigh the manageable cautions.Positive Updates
Record-Breaking Revenue and Extended Growth Streak
Net sales of $63.0 million in Q1 2026, a 36.7% year-over-year increase; crossed the $60 million threshold for the first time and marked 26 consecutive quarters of growth.
Negative Updates
Higher Absolute SG&A Spending
Selling, general & administrative expenses rose to $10.9 million, a 16.8% increase year-over-year, reflecting elevated marketing and brand-building investments (though SG&A leveraged by ~300 basis points as a percentage of revenue).
Read all updates
Q1-2026 Updates
Positive
Negative
Record-Breaking Revenue and Extended Growth Streak
Net sales of $63.0 million in Q1 2026, a 36.7% year-over-year increase; crossed the $60 million threshold for the first time and marked 26 consecutive quarters of growth.
Read all positive updates
Company Guidance
LifeWay said it exceeded the top end of the preliminary April outlook and reiterated confident near‑term guidance: the Waukesha facility expansion remains on track for completion by the end of 2026 with the full initiative online in Q1 2027 to materially increase production capacity, improve efficiencies and grow the workforce; management expects continued volume‑led growth off a record Q1 with net sales of $63.0 million (+36.7% YoY and the 26th consecutive quarterly increase), gross margin of 27.5% (up 360 bps from 23.9% a year ago), SG&A of $10.9 million (+16.8% YoY) but leveraged 300 bps as a percent of revenue, and net income of $4.7 million ($0.31 basic, $0.30 diluted; +32% YoY), while continuing to invest in marketing and innovation (including products presented at Expo West, a Costco twin‑pack roll‑out, and a partnership yielding 10+ million social views) to drive trial, velocity and share gains.Lifeway Foods Financial Statement Overview
Summary
Income Statement
74
Positive
Balance Sheet
67
Positive
Cash Flow
41
Neutral
| Breakdown | TTM | Dec 2025 | Dec 2024 | Dec 2023 | Dec 2022 | Jun 2022 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Income Statement | ||||||
| Total Revenue | 242.41M | 212.50M | 186.82M | 160.12M | 141.57M | 119.06M |
| Gross Profit | 63.06M | 58.21M | 48.57M | 42.44M | 26.79M | 28.71M |
| EBITDA | 19.89M | 23.74M | 17.46M | 20.20M | 5.08M | 8.61M |
| Net Income | 10.87M | 13.86M | 9.03M | 11.37M | 924.00K | 3.31M |
Balance Sheet | ||||||
| Total Assets | 132.40M | 105.61M | 90.55M | 82.64M | 69.00M | 71.55M |
| Cash, Cash Equivalents and Short-Term Investments | 7.09M | 5.57M | 16.73M | 13.20M | 4.44M | 9.23M |
| Total Debt | 22.63M | 466.00K | 117.00K | 2.92M | 6.68M | 7.46M |
| Total Liabilities | 47.83M | 19.79M | 18.64M | 22.20M | 21.43M | 22.42M |
| Stockholders Equity | 84.57M | 85.82M | 71.91M | 60.44M | 47.57M | 49.13M |
Cash Flow | ||||||
| Free Cash Flow | -31.14M | -16.41M | 6.26M | 12.59M | 538.00K | 3.64M |
| Operating Cash Flow | 11.20M | 10.95M | 12.96M | 16.94M | 3.99M | 5.56M |
| Investing Cash Flow | -42.12M | -22.04M | -6.68M | -4.41M | -4.03M | -7.14M |
| Financing Cash Flow | 16.78M | -65.00K | -2.75M | -3.78M | -4.75M | 2.88M |
Lifeway Foods Technical Analysis
Neutral
26.35
Price Trends
23.65
Negative
26.20
Negative
24.55
Negative
Market Momentum
-0.32
Negative
48.18
Neutral
67.03
Neutral
Evaluating momentum and price trends is crucial in stock analysis to make informed investment decisions. For LWAY, the sentiment is Neutral. The current price of 26.35 is above the 20-day moving average (MA) of 21.78, above the 50-day MA of 23.65, and above the 200-day MA of 24.55, indicating a neutral trend. The MACD of -0.32 indicates Negative momentum. The RSI at 48.18 is Neutral, neither overbought nor oversold. The STOCH value of 67.03 is Neutral, not indicating any strong overbought or oversold conditions. Overall, these indicators collectively point to a Neutral sentiment for LWAY.
Lifeway Foods Risk Analysis
Lifeway Foods disclosed 21 risk factors in its most recent earnings report. Lifeway Foods reported the most risks in the "Finance & Corporate" category.
Finance & Corporate - Financial and accounting risks. Risks related to the execution of corporate activity and strategy
Latest Risks Added 0 New Risks
Lifeway Foods Peers Comparison
UnderperformOutperform
Sector (62)
Name | Overall Rating | Market Cap | P/E Ratio | ROE | Dividend Yield | Revenue Growth | EPS Growth |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
68 Neutral | $604.43M | 70.83 | 9.10% | ― | 53.88% | 48.88% | |
62 Neutral | $20.33B | 14.63 | -3.31% | 3.23% | 1.93% | -12.26% | |
58 Neutral | $964.07M | -14.96 | -24.25% | ― | 38.57% | 29.71% | |
57 Neutral | $213.79M | 11.91 | 11.00% | 5.48% | 6.77% | 34.53% | |
56 Neutral | $339.30M | 31.26 | 12.66% | <0.01% | 25.59% | 1.38% | |
49 Neutral | $282.82M | -33.73 | -8.09% | ― | 10.49% | 76.67% | |
47 Neutral | $257.93M | -11.57 | -4.16% | ― | 1.57% | -166.61% |
* Consumer Defensive Sector Average
LWAY
Lifeway Foods
22.46
-3.30
-12.83%
NATR
Nature's Sunshine Products
12.15
-1.61
-11.70%
USNA
USANA Health
13.96
-6.14
-30.55%
MAMA
Mama's Creations
12.82
1.84
16.76%
BRCC
BRC
11.30
-2.50
-18.12%
WEST
Westrock Coffee
9.88
4.82
95.16%
Glossary
BuyA stock rated as a "Buy" is expected to perform better than the overall market or a specific benchmark over the near-to-medium term. This rating suggests the stock is likely to deliver higher returns compared to other stocks in the same sector or market index. Note: This is not investment advice; please consult a financial advisor before making investment decisions.
HoldA stock rated as a "Hold" is expected to perform in line with the overall market or a specific benchmark. This rating indicates that the stock is neither particularly compelling nor unfavorable for investment. Note: This is not investment advice; please consult a financial advisor before making investment decisions.
SellA stock rated as a "Sell" is expected to perform worse than the overall market or a specific benchmark over the near-to-medium term. This rating suggests the stock may deliver lower returns compared to other stocks in the same sector or market index. Note: This is not investment advice; please consult a financial advisor before making investment decisions.
Disclaimer
This AI Analyst Stock Report is automatically generated by our AI systems using advanced algorithms and publicly available financial, technical, and market data. While the information provided aims to be accurate and insightful, it is intended for informational purposes only and should not be considered financial advice. Any content created by an AI (Artificial Intelligence) system may contain inaccuracies and/or contain errors. Investing in stocks carries inherent risks, and past performance is not indicative of future results. This report does not account for your personal financial circumstances, objectives, or risk tolerance. Always conduct your own research or consult with a qualified financial advisor before making investment decisions. The analysis and recommendations provided are based on historical and current data and may not fully reflect future market conditions or unexpected developments. Neither the creators of this report nor its affiliated entities guarantee the accuracy, completeness, or reliability of the information presented. Use this report at your own discretion and risk.