Short Interest in Oil-Dri Co. of America (NYSE:ODC) Rises By 85.0%

Oil-Dri Co. of America (NYSE:ODC) was the target of a large growth in short interest in the month of January. As of January 15th, there was short interest totalling 144,300 shares, a growth of 85.0% from the December 31st total of 78,000 shares. Based on an average daily trading volume, of 41,500 shares, the short-interest ratio is currently 3.5 days.

Insider Activity

In other Oil-Dri Co. of America news, Director Amy Ryan sold 2,100 shares of Oil-Dri Co. of America stock in a transaction on Thursday, January 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $41.78, for a total transaction of $87,738.00. Following the sale, the director now owns 3,900 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $162,942. The trade was a 35.00 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, VP Christopher B. Lamson sold 3,154 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, January 22nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $42.75, for a total value of $134,833.50. Following the transaction, the vice president now owns 70,796 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $3,026,529. This trade represents a 4.27 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Company insiders own 11.66% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of Oil-Dri Co. of America

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the business. Needham Investment Management LLC boosted its holdings in Oil-Dri Co. of America by 10.8% during the third quarter. Needham Investment Management LLC now owns 267,500 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock worth $18,455,000 after buying an additional 26,000 shares in the last quarter. Royce & Associates LP lifted its position in shares of Oil-Dri Co. of America by 1.4% during the 3rd quarter. Royce & Associates LP now owns 162,000 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock valued at $11,176,000 after acquiring an additional 2,300 shares during the last quarter. State Street Corp boosted its stake in shares of Oil-Dri Co. of America by 2.1% during the 3rd quarter. State Street Corp now owns 103,006 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock worth $7,106,000 after acquiring an additional 2,114 shares in the last quarter. Cardinal Capital Management grew its holdings in shares of Oil-Dri Co. of America by 3.6% in the 3rd quarter. Cardinal Capital Management now owns 47,889 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock worth $3,304,000 after acquiring an additional 1,650 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Foundry Partners LLC grew its holdings in shares of Oil-Dri Co. of America by 1.0% in the 3rd quarter. Foundry Partners LLC now owns 37,041 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock worth $2,555,000 after acquiring an additional 350 shares during the last quarter. 49.01% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Oil-Dri Co. of America Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:ODC opened at $42.13 on Friday. The stock has a market cap of $615.10 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of 13.61 and a beta of 0.53. 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 has a 12 month low of $29.47 and a 12 month high of $46.50. The stock’s 50 day moving average price is $33.40 and its 200 day moving average price is $22.55.

Oil-Dri Co. of America (NYSE:ODC) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Monday, December 9th. The specialty chemicals company reported $0.56 EPS for the quarter. Oil-Dri Co. of America had a return on equity of 21.84% and a net margin of 9.92%.

Oil-Dri Co. of America Cuts Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, March 7th. Shareholders of record on Friday, February 21st will be issued a $0.155 dividend. This represents a $0.62 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.47%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, February 21st. Oil-Dri Co. of America’s payout ratio is 20.03%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Separately, StockNews.com lowered shares of Oil-Dri Co. of America from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Tuesday, January 14th.

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.