Comparing Cal-Maine Foods (NASDAQ:CALM) & Lifeway Foods (NASDAQ:LWAY)

Lifeway Foods (NASDAQ:LWAY) and Cal-Maine Foods (NASDAQ:CALM) are both consumer staples companies, but which is the better business? We will compare the two companies based on the strength of their valuation, earnings, dividends, analyst recommendations, risk, profitability and institutional ownership.

Profitability

This table compares Lifeway Foods and Cal-Maine Foods’ net margins, return on equity and return on assets.

	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
Lifeway Foods	4.48%	12.66%	9.29%
Cal-Maine Foods	2.32%	2.21%	1.89%

Analyst Recommendations

This is a breakdown of current ratings and target prices for Lifeway Foods and Cal-Maine Foods, as reported by MarketBeat.

	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
Lifeway Foods	0	1	2	1	3.00
Cal-Maine Foods	0	5	1	0	2.17

Lifeway Foods presently has a consensus price target of $34.00, suggesting a potential upside of 53.43%. Cal-Maine Foods has a consensus price target of $84.17, suggesting a potential upside of 30.80%. Given Lifeway Foods’ stronger consensus rating and higher possible upside, analysts plainly believe Lifeway Foods is more favorable than Cal-Maine Foods.

Insider & Institutional Ownership

36.4% of Lifeway Foods shares are owned by institutional investors. Comparatively, 84.7% of Cal-Maine Foods shares are owned by institutional investors. 18.6% of Lifeway Foods shares are owned by company insiders. Comparatively, 3.6% of Cal-Maine Foods shares are owned by company insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that large money managers, endowments and hedge funds believe a company is poised for long-term growth.

Valuation and Earnings

This table compares Lifeway Foods and Cal-Maine Foods”s gross revenue, earnings per share and valuation.

	Gross Revenue	Price/Sales Ratio	Net Income	Earnings Per Share	Price/Earnings Ratio
Lifeway Foods	$242.41 million	1.38	$13.86 million	$0.70	31.66
Cal-Maine Foods	$2.91 billion	1.03	$316.68 million	$1.17	55.00

Cal-Maine Foods has higher revenue and earnings than Lifeway Foods. Lifeway Foods is trading at a lower price-to-earnings ratio than Cal-Maine Foods, indicating that it is currently the more affordable of the two stocks.

Volatility & Risk

Lifeway Foods has a beta of 0.47, indicating that its share price is 53% less volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, Cal-Maine Foods has a beta of 0.25, indicating that its share price is 75% less volatile than the S&P 500.

Summary

Lifeway Foods beats Cal-Maine Foods on 10 of the 15 factors compared between the two stocks.

About Lifeway Foods

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. It sells its products under the Lifeway, GlenOaks Farms, and Fresh Made brand names, as well as under private labels on behalf of customers primarily through direct sales force, brokers, and distributors. Lifeway Foods, Inc. was incorporated in 1986 and is based in Morton Grove, Illinois.

About Cal-Maine Foods

Cal-Maine Foods, Inc., together with its subsidiaries, produces, grades, packages, markets, and distributes shell eggs. The company offers specialty shell eggs, such as nutritionally enhanced, cage free, organic, free-range, pasture-raised, and brown eggs under the Egg-Land's Best, Land O' Lakes, Farmhouse Eggs, Sunups, Sunny Meadow, and 4Grain brand names. It sells its products to various customers, including national and regional grocery store chains, club stores, independent supermarkets, foodservice distributors, and egg product consumers primarily in the southwestern, southeastern, mid-western, and mid-Atlantic regions of the United States. Cal-Maine Foods, Inc. was founded in 1957 and is headquartered in Ridgeland, Mississippi.