Oil-Dri Co. of America (NYSE:ODC) Rating Lowered to Hold at StockNews.com

StockNews.com cut shares of Oil-Dri Co. of America (NYSE:ODC - Free Report) from a buy rating to a hold rating in a research report released on Thursday morning.

Oil-Dri Co. of America Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:ODC traded down $0.48 during trading on Thursday, reaching $42.78. The stock had a trading volume of 46,205 shares, compared to its average volume of 41,846. The stock has a market capitalization of $624.37 million, a PE ratio of 13.82 and a beta of 0.55. Oil-Dri Co. of America has a 52 week low of $29.47 and a 52 week high of $49.72. The business's 50-day moving average price is $44.71 and its 200 day moving average price is $31.88. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.20, a current ratio of 2.63 and a quick ratio of 1.61.

Oil-Dri Co. of America (NYSE:ODC - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, March 11th. The specialty chemicals company reported $0.89 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter. Oil-Dri Co. of America had a return on equity of 21.84% and a net margin of 9.92%. The firm had revenue of $116.91 million during the quarter.

Oil-Dri Co. of America Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, May 23rd. Shareholders of record on Friday, May 9th will be given a $0.155 dividend. This represents a $0.62 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.45%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, May 9th. Oil-Dri Co. of America's payout ratio is presently 19.81%.

Insider Transactions at Oil-Dri Co. of America

In related news, VP Christopher B. Lamson sold 3,154 shares of Oil-Dri Co. of America stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, January 22nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $42.75, for a total value of $134,833.50. Following the completion of the sale, the vice president now directly owns 70,796 shares in the company, valued at $3,026,529. This trade represents a 4.27 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, Director Amy Ryan sold 2,100 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Thursday, January 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $41.78, for a total value of $87,738.00. Following the sale, the director now directly owns 3,900 shares of the company's stock, valued at $162,942. This represents a 35.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 11.66% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Oil-Dri Co. of America

Several institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of ODC. American Century Companies Inc. boosted its stake in Oil-Dri Co. of America by 11.5% in the fourth quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 146,239 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock valued at $12,816,000 after acquiring an additional 15,041 shares during the last quarter. Needham Investment Management LLC lifted its stake in shares of Oil-Dri Co. of America by 4.7% in the 4th quarter. Needham Investment Management LLC now owns 280,000 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock valued at $24,539,000 after purchasing an additional 12,500 shares during the period. Walleye Capital LLC bought a new position in shares of Oil-Dri Co. of America in the 4th quarter worth $772,000. Citadel Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Oil-Dri Co. of America during the fourth quarter worth $701,000. Finally, ProShare Advisors LLC grew its stake in shares of Oil-Dri Co. of America by 6.1% during the fourth quarter. ProShare Advisors LLC now owns 132,412 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock worth $11,605,000 after purchasing an additional 7,606 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 49.01% of the company's stock.

Oil-Dri Co. of America Company Profile

Oil-Dri Corporation of America is a manufacturer and supplier of specialty sorbent products for the pet care, animal health and nutrition, fluids purification, agricultural ingredients, sports field, industrial and automotive markets. It operates through the Business to Business Products Group and Retail and Wholesale Products Group segments.