Oil-Dri Co. of America (NYSE:ODC) Raised to “Buy” at StockNews.com

Oil-Dri Co. of America (NYSE:ODC) was upgraded by investment analysts at StockNews.com from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report issued to clients and investors on Wednesday.

Oil-Dri Co. of America Stock Performance

Shares of ODC traded up $0.14 during mid-day trading on Wednesday, hitting $45.84. 34,302 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 40,911. Oil-Dri Co. of America has a 1 year low of $29.47 and a 1 year high of $49.72. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.20, a quick ratio of 1.61 and a current ratio of 2.63. The stock has a 50-day moving average price of $44.32 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $30.18. The stock has a market cap of $669.06 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of 14.81 and a beta of 0.44.

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

Insider Activity at Oil-Dri Co. of America

In other Oil-Dri Co. of America news, Director Amy Ryan sold 2,100 shares of the stock in a transaction on Thursday, January 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $41.78, for a total value of $87,738.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director now owns 3,900 shares in the company, valued at approximately $162,942. This represents a 35.00 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, VP Christopher B. Lamson sold 3,154 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, January 22nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $42.75, for a total value of $134,833.50. Following the completion of the transaction, the vice president now owns 70,796 shares in the company, valued at $3,026,529. The trade was a 4.27 % 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 Trading of Oil-Dri Co. of America

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in ODC. Needham Investment Management LLC grew its holdings in Oil-Dri Co. of America by 4.7% during 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 buying an additional 12,500 shares in the last quarter. Royce & Associates LP lifted its stake in Oil-Dri Co. of America by 2.5% in the 4th quarter. Royce & Associates LP now owns 166,000 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock worth $14,548,000 after purchasing an additional 4,000 shares in the last quarter. American Century Companies Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of Oil-Dri Co. of America by 11.5% during the 4th quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 146,239 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock valued at $12,816,000 after purchasing an additional 15,041 shares during the last quarter. ProShare Advisors LLC increased its holdings in shares of Oil-Dri Co. of America by 6.1% in 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 last quarter. Finally, Geode Capital Management LLC lifted its position in shares of Oil-Dri Co. of America by 0.3% in the fourth quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 112,183 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock worth $9,834,000 after buying an additional 352 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 49.01% of the company’s stock.

About Oil-Dri Co. of America

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.