American Century Companies Inc. Buys 184,844 Shares of Oil-Dri Corporation Of America $ODC

Key Points

• American Century Companies Inc. increased its stake in Oil-Dri Corporation Of America by 126.4%, acquiring an additional 184,844 shares during the 1st quarter, bringing its total ownership to approximately 2.27% of the company.
• Oil-Dri Corporation Of America recently announced a dividend increase, raising its quarterly dividend from $0.16 to $0.18, which represents a 1.2% yield.
• Institutional investors now own 49.01% of Oil-Dri Corporation Of America's stock, reflecting strong interest from various hedge funds and investment firms.

American Century Companies Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Oil-Dri Corporation Of America (NYSE:ODC - Free Report) by 126.4% in the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 331,083 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock after buying an additional 184,844 shares during the quarter. American Century Companies Inc. owned about 2.27% of Oil-Dri Corporation Of America worth $15,203,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of the business. Vanguard Group Inc. grew its position in shares of Oil-Dri Corporation Of America by 119.3% during the 1st quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 612,195 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock worth $28,112,000 after buying an additional 333,053 shares during the period. Royce & Associates LP lifted its position in shares of Oil-Dri Corporation Of America by 102.4% in the first quarter. Royce & Associates LP now owns 336,000 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock worth $15,429,000 after purchasing an additional 170,000 shares in the last quarter. Needham Investment Management LLC lifted its position in shares of Oil-Dri Corporation Of America by 4.7% in the fourth quarter. Needham Investment Management LLC now owns 280,000 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock worth $24,539,000 after purchasing an additional 12,500 shares in the last quarter. Diamond Hill Capital Management Inc. lifted its position in shares of Oil-Dri Corporation Of America by 42.1% in the first quarter. Diamond Hill Capital Management Inc. now owns 139,092 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock worth $6,387,000 after purchasing an additional 41,212 shares in the last quarter. Finally, ProShare Advisors LLC increased its holdings in Oil-Dri Corporation 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 buying an additional 7,606 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 49.01% of the company's stock.

Insider Activity

In other news, Director Ellen-Blair Chube sold 2,500 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Friday, June 20th. The shares were sold at an average price of $55.83, for a total value of $139,575.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director owned 9,320 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $520,335.60. The trade was a 21.15% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, Director Amy Ryan sold 1,000 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, July 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $60.62, for a total transaction of $60,620.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director directly owned 2,900 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $175,798. The trade was a 25.64% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last 90 days, insiders sold 6,000 shares of company stock valued at $354,570. 11.66% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Oil-Dri Corporation Of America Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE:ODC traded up $0.54 on Thursday, hitting $59.13. The company had a trading volume of 54,180 shares, compared to its average volume of 49,999. Oil-Dri Corporation Of America has a 1-year low of $32.06 and a 1-year high of $63.82. The stock has a market cap of $865.47 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of 17.39 and a beta of 0.67. The stock has a 50 day moving average price of $58.81 and a 200 day moving average price of $50.69. The company has a current ratio of 2.83, a quick ratio of 1.85 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.16.

Oil-Dri Corporation Of America (NYSE:ODC - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, June 5th. The specialty chemicals company reported $0.80 EPS for the quarter. Oil-Dri Corporation Of America had a net margin of 10.44% and a return on equity of 21.57%. The firm had revenue of $115.50 million for the quarter.

Oil-Dri Corporation Of America Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, August 22nd. Stockholders of record on Friday, August 8th were given a $0.18 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, August 8th. This is a boost from Oil-Dri Corporation Of America's previous quarterly dividend of $0.16. This represents a $0.72 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.2%. Oil-Dri Corporation Of America's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 21.18%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Separately, Wall Street Zen downgraded shares of Oil-Dri Corporation Of America from a "strong-buy" rating to a "buy" rating in a report on Sunday, June 22nd.

Oil-Dri Corporation Of America 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.