Oil-Dri Corporation Of America (NYSE:ODC) Sees Strong Trading Volume – Still a Buy?

Oil-Dri Corporation Of America (NYSE:ODC) shares saw an uptick in trading volume on Thursday . Approximately 77,626 shares traded hands during mid-day trading, a decline of 6% from the previous session’s volume of 82,348 shares.The stock last traded at $94.8810 and had previously closed at $94.79.

Analyst Ratings Changes

ODC has been the subject of a number of research analyst reports. Wall Street Zen raised Oil-Dri Corporation Of America from a “buy” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Sunday, July 12th. Weiss Ratings raised shares of Oil-Dri Corporation Of America from a “buy (b-)” rating to a “buy (b)” rating in a report on Friday, May 1st. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Buy rating, According to data from MarketBeat.com, Oil-Dri Corporation Of America presently has an average rating of “Buy”.

Oil-Dri Corporation Of America Stock Down 0.3%

The firm’s 50-day moving average is $91.13 and its two-hundred day moving average is $73.92. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.14, a quick ratio of 2.40 and a current ratio of 3.28. The stock has a market cap of $1.37 billion, a P/E ratio of 24.29 and a beta of 0.77.

Oil-Dri Corporation Of America (NYSE:ODC) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Monday, June 8th. The specialty chemicals company reported $1.00 EPS for the quarter. The firm had revenue of $126.33 million for the quarter. Oil-Dri Corporation Of America had a return on equity of 20.53% and a net margin of 11.35%.During the same quarter in the previous year, the business posted $0.80 earnings per share.

Oil-Dri Corporation Of America Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, August 21st. Stockholders of record on Friday, August 7th will be paid a dividend of $0.225 per share. This represents a $0.90 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.0%. This is a boost from Oil-Dri Corporation Of America’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.20. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, August 7th. Oil-Dri Corporation Of America’s payout ratio is currently 21.08%.

Institutional Trading of Oil-Dri Corporation Of America

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Vanguard Group Inc. raised its holdings in Oil-Dri Corporation Of America by 1.4% during the 3rd quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 641,978 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock worth $39,186,000 after purchasing an additional 8,951 shares during the last quarter. Needham Investment Management LLC boosted its stake in shares of Oil-Dri Corporation Of America by 10.7% in the 4th quarter. Needham Investment Management LLC now owns 635,000 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock valued at $31,077,000 after purchasing an additional 61,500 shares during the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC boosted its stake in shares of Oil-Dri Corporation Of America by 3.8% in the 4th quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 273,483 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock valued at $13,386,000 after purchasing an additional 10,102 shares during the last quarter. State Street Corp grew its position in shares of Oil-Dri Corporation Of America by 3.2% during the 4th quarter. State Street Corp now owns 223,605 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock worth $10,943,000 after buying an additional 7,005 shares during the period. Finally, Diamond Hill Capital Management Inc. grew its position in shares of Oil-Dri Corporation Of America by 12.9% during the 4th quarter. Diamond Hill Capital Management Inc. now owns 141,178 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock worth $6,909,000 after buying an additional 16,124 shares during the period. 49.01% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

About Oil-Dri Corporation Of America

Oil-Dri Corporation of America is a specialty materials company that develops, manufactures and markets sorbent and filtration products for industrial, environmental and consumer applications. Its flagship offerings include clay- and diatomaceous earth–based cat litters, calcium silicate absorbents for spill control and cleanup, and purification media designed to remove contaminants from petroleum, chemical and food-processing streams.

Founded in 1941 and headquartered in Chicago, Illinois, the company has evolved from a single-product operation into a diversified provider of mineral- and chemical-based solutions.