Lifeway Foods needs to hurry up and file its 2014 annual report or risk being delisted from Nasdaq.
It is not the first time the Morton Grove-based maker of kefir has been late in filing its financial reports with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission.
Lifeway said late Thursday that it received a letter dated April 6 from Nasdaq’s listing qualifications department. Lifeway has not filed its 2014 annual report with the SEC and therefore is not compliant with Nasdaq’s periodic filing requirements for continued listing on the exchange.
The dairy products company said it is working “diligently” on its plan to regain compliance and to file its annual report “as soon as practicable.” Lifeway expects to make the filing within two weeks and does not expect any material changes to the results it issued in its March 16 earnings press release.
On March 16, Lifeway told the SEC it could not file its annual report in a timely manner because it needed additional time to complete its financial statements and to prepare the form.
It has filed similar late notifications in the past, including for its 2013 annual report. It ultimately filed its 2013 annual report on April 2, 2014. The 2013 annual report was then amended in October to expand certain sections and to correct disclosure about the company’s total operating expenses.
According to Lifeway, Nasdaq is giving the company 60 days to submit a plan of how it aims to comply with the filing requirement. If Nasdaq accepts Lifeway’s compliance plan, the stock exchange could grant Lifeway an extension of up to 180 days from the filing due date.
In March, Lifeway reported that its 2014 net profit declined 43 percent to $2.8 million. Its sales rose 22 percent to $119 million.
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