LWAY

SellFallen Favourite

Lifeway Foods, Inc. · Consumer Defensive · United States · $339M cap · $3.3M/day traded

$22.80 -1.8% · close 28 Oct · scored 29 Oct

Fallen Favourite: A good business, still expensive, and the price is falling.

28
StockRank
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Quality
57
Value
22
Momentum
36

As of 29 Oct 2026, MoatMap's StockRank for Lifeway Foods, Inc. (LWAY) is 28/100, ranked against 24,000+ stocks in 35 markets (Quality 57, Value 22, Momentum 36, each scored against its sector).

Does StockRank work? Each month we publish how every decile did, whichever way it went. See the record →

P/E (TTM)
32.6x
peers 21.7x
ROE
13.3%
peers 10.0%
D/E
0.3x
peers 0.8x
Dividend %
—
trailing yield

ABOUT LIFEWAY FOODS, INC.

Read

Lifeway Foods, Inc. manufactures and markets kefir, a fermented milk drink, along with other probiotic products in the United States and internationally. As a pioneer and leading producer of kefir in the US, Lifeway has established strong brand recognition and dominant market share in the growing probiotic food and beverage segment. The company capitalizes on increasing consumer demand for health-conscious and probiotic-rich foods.

FINANCIAL SUMMARY (USD)

Year2022202320242025CAGRTTM2026E2027EFwd CAGR
Revenue141.6M160.1M186.8M212.5M14.5%242.4M262.6M298.4M18.5%
EPS0.060.770.610.91147.5%0.690.501.3521.8%
Shares14.6M14.7M15.1M15.2M+4.0%15.1M———
Debt6.7M2.9M0.1M0.5M-58.8%22.5M———
Equity47.6M60.4M71.9M85.8M21.7%————
Op CF4.0M16.9M13.0M10.9M40.0%11.2M———
Inv CF-4.0M-4.4M-6.7M-22.0M—————
Fin CF-4.7M-3.8M-2.8M-65.0K—————
Loading 1Y...
PRICE (1Y) · USD-4.2%
20.521.322.223.023.917 Sep8 Oct28 Oct
SMA 50SMA 200

Price checkNo clear trendExperimental

No clear trend: not near its 52-week low, and not in a steady uptrend.

SwingsBumpy

Swung more than 53% of stocks we rank over the past year (44% a year).

How this is worked out

StockRank judges the business. The price check reads only the chart: it is the price side of the Momentum score, in words.

The rules: Still falling is a new 52-week low in the last two weeks, at least 25% below the high. Finding a floor is no new low since. Turning up is 20 or more trading days without a new low, at least 10% off it, and back above a rising 50-day average. In an uptrend is above the 200-day average and within 15% of the high.

In 2,112 US drawdowns since 2001, buying while the price was still falling was followed by a further 20% drop 42% of the time. Waiting for a turn like this one cut that to 33%, at about 7% higher prices and with no better returns. Part of that cut is simply not buying: 13% of falls never turned, and waiting kept those out. Among turns that were bought, 38% still fell another 20%, and 33% of turns were followed by a new low within six months. The benefit was largest in crashes such as 2008 and 2020.

What it measures: day-to-day price moves over the past year, as a yearly figure, ranked against every stock we cover. Very calm under 20% a year, Calm 20 to 30%, Average 30 to 40%, Bumpy 40 to 55%, Very bumpy above that.

What we found: across about 13,500 stocks in 34 markets (2002 to 2025), past swings were a good guide to the next year's, and bumpier stocks fell further. How much further changed too much between eras to put a number on it.

Calm is not safe: a calm stock can still slide steadily.

Rules fixed before any data was fetched. Describes the chart, not a recommendation.

Close
$22.80
RSI (14)
66.2
52-Week Range-30.3% from high
Low $17.31High $32.71

SCORE BREAKDOWN

Quality
57
ROIC
23.7%88.1
ROE
13.3%66.3
GP/Assets
62.4%91.2
Op. Margin
0.9%18.5
FCF/Assets
-19.6%3.1
Piotroski
413.2
Int. Cover
50.0x87.5
D/E Ratio
0.27x57.0
Current Ratio
2.09x66.0
Value
22
P/E (TTM)
32.6x18.6
EV/EBITDA
17.7x19.2
P/FCF
—N/A
P/B
4.0x16.7
P/S
1.4x37.5
Div Yield
—N/A
Momentum
36
52W High %
70%37.9
RS 6M
-24%19.7
SMA 50/200
0.96x39.7
EPS Rev 4W
0.0%55.7
EPS Rev 12W
-1.5%27.6
EPS Improve
+96%72.9
Q Growth
-97%0.6

FUNDAMENTALS

Market Cap
$339M
P/E (Forward)
16.6x
Gross Margin
27.2%

SECTOR PEERS

Closest peers in Consumer Defensive, ranked by industry match, size, and score similarity. Cross-listings of LWAY are excluded.

TickerCompanyMkt CapStockRankSignal
LWAYLifeway Foods, Inc.(you)$339M28Sell
BRCCBRC Inc.$283M25Sell
BGSB&G Foods, Inc.$171M28Sell
NAGENiagen Bioscience, Inc.$192M24Sell
OFRMOnce Upon A Farm, PBC$668M25Sell
WESTWestrock Coffee Company$964M31Sell
SMPLThe Simply Good Foods Company$921M33Sell
MAMAMama's Creations, Inc.$604M43Hold
USNAUSANA Health Sciences, Inc.$258M51Hold
ENHAEnhanced Group Inc.$435M4Strong Sell

Peer medians: ROE 10.0% · P/E 21.7x · Gross margin 35.0%

Company Deep Dive

Business segments breakdown, earnings transcript analysis, management credibility scoring, competitive landscape, and scenario modelling.

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Lifeway Foods, Inc. (LWAY): Stock Score Summary

Lifeway Foods, Inc. (LWAY) has a MoatMap StockRank of 28/100 based on Quality (57/100), Value (22/100), and Momentum (36/100) factor scores. The current signal is SELL.

Lifeway Foods, Inc. manufactures and markets kefir, a fermented milk drink, along with other probiotic products in the United States and internationally. As a pioneer and leading producer of kefir in the US, Lifeway has established strong brand recognition and dominant market share in the growing probiotic food and beverage segment. The company capitalizes on increasing consumer demand for health-conscious and probiotic-rich foods.

Key Financial Metrics

Price$22.80
Market Cap$339M
P/E (TTM)32.55
P/E (Forward)16.64
Price/Book4.01
Return on Equity13.3%
Return on Invested Capital23.7%
Debt/Equity0.27x
Gross Margin27.2%
Operating Margin0.9%
Revenue Growth24.1%
Free Cash Flow$-21M

Lifeway Foods, Inc. operates in the Packaged Foods industry, part of the Consumer Defensive sector (United States).

Frequently Asked Questions

What is Lifeway Foods, Inc.’s (LWAY) StockRank?
MoatMap’s StockRank for Lifeway Foods, Inc. (LWAY) is 28/100, with a Sell signal. It is a composite of Quality (57), Value (22), and Momentum (36), each scored against its sector. The composite is then ranked across MoatMap’s universe of 24,000+ stocks.
Does Lifeway Foods, Inc. have an economic moat?
Lifeway Foods, Inc. (LWAY) has a Quality factor score of 57/100. The Quality factor combines ROIC, Piotroski F-Score, and leverage: the financial fingerprints of a durable competitive advantage. A Quality score above 70 typically indicates a company with the characteristics of a moated business.
Is Lifeway Foods, Inc. a buy, hold, or sell?
MoatMap’s current signal for Lifeway Foods, Inc. (LWAY) is Sell, based on a StockRank of 28/100. Signals are derived mechanically from the StockRank composite and should be one input among many; combine with your own thesis on management, competitive position, and valuation.
What sector is Lifeway Foods, Inc. in?
Lifeway Foods, Inc. (LWAY) operates in the Consumer Defensive sector, specifically the Packaged Foods industry (United States).