Oil-Dri Corporation Of America (NYSE:ODC) Hits New 52-Week High – Time to Buy?

Oil-Dri Corporation Of America (NYSE:ODC) shares hit a new 52-week high on Friday . The stock traded as high as $85.67 and last traded at $84.58, with a volume of 23010 shares trading hands. The stock had previously closed at $84.08.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several brokerages have weighed in on ODC. Weiss Ratings upgraded shares of Oil-Dri Corporation Of America from a “buy (b-)” rating to a “buy (b)” rating in a research note on Friday, May 1st. Wall Street Zen downgraded shares of Oil-Dri Corporation Of America from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Saturday, May 9th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Buy rating, Based on data from MarketBeat, Oil-Dri Corporation Of America currently has a consensus rating of “Buy”.

Oil-Dri Corporation Of America Stock Up 1.0%

The company’s 50 day moving average price is $73.14 and its 200 day moving average price is $62.98. The company has a quick ratio of 2.40, a current ratio of 3.45 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.14. The firm has a market capitalization of $1.23 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 23.00 and a beta of 0.81.

Oil-Dri Corporation Of America Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed 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. The ex-dividend date is Friday, August 7th. This is an increase from Oil-Dri Corporation Of America’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.21. This represents a $0.90 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.1%. Oil-Dri Corporation Of America’s payout ratio is presently 22.22%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Oil-Dri Corporation Of America

In other news, Director Ellen-Blair Chube sold 1,390 shares of Oil-Dri Corporation Of America stock in a transaction on Wednesday, April 22nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $73.06, for a total transaction of $101,553.40. Following the completion of the sale, the director directly owned 8,930 shares in the company, valued at approximately $652,425.80. The trade was a 13.47% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, Director Paul Hindsley sold 6,000 shares of Oil-Dri Corporation Of America stock in a transaction on Friday, March 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $63.90, for a total transaction of $383,400.00. Following the sale, the director owned 11,000 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $702,900. The trade was a 35.29% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Insiders own 11.69% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the business. Legal & General Group Plc increased its holdings in Oil-Dri Corporation Of America by 20.1% in the second quarter. Legal & General Group Plc now owns 1,062 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock valued at $63,000 after buying an additional 178 shares in the last quarter. Russell Investments Group Ltd. increased its holdings in Oil-Dri Corporation Of America by 57.4% in the second quarter. Russell Investments Group Ltd. now owns 502 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock valued at $30,000 after buying an additional 183 shares in the last quarter. Cardinal Capital Management increased its holdings in Oil-Dri Corporation Of America by 0.3% in the fourth quarter. Cardinal Capital Management now owns 87,950 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock valued at $4,304,000 after buying an additional 279 shares in the last quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. increased its stake in shares of Oil-Dri Corporation Of America by 4.1% during the third quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 7,280 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock worth $444,000 after purchasing an additional 284 shares in the last quarter. Finally, SG Americas Securities LLC increased its stake in shares of Oil-Dri Corporation Of America by 9.4% during the fourth quarter. SG Americas Securities LLC now owns 4,567 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock worth $224,000 after purchasing an additional 391 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 49.01% of the company’s stock.

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.