Diamond Hill Capital Management Inc. Acquires 41,212 Shares of Oil-Dri Corporation Of America (NYSE:ODC)

Key Points

• Diamond Hill Capital Management Inc. has increased its stake in Oil-Dri Corporation of America by 42.1%, acquiring an additional 41,212 shares, bringing its total ownership to 139,092 shares valued at approximately $6.39 million.
• Oil-Dri Corporation recently announced a dividend increase to $0.18 per share, up from $0.16, reflecting a 1.21% dividend yield.
• Institutional investors now hold 49.01% of the company's stock, indicating significant interest from large financial entities.

Diamond Hill Capital Management Inc. grew its position in Oil-Dri Corporation Of America (NYSE:ODC - Free Report) by 42.1% in the first quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 139,092 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock after acquiring an additional 41,212 shares during the quarter. Diamond Hill Capital Management Inc. owned 0.95% of Oil-Dri Corporation Of America worth $6,387,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of ODC. Trust Co. of Vermont increased its holdings in Oil-Dri Corporation Of America by 100.0% during the 1st quarter. Trust Co. of Vermont now owns 600 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock valued at $28,000 after purchasing an additional 300 shares in the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC increased its stake in shares of Oil-Dri Corporation Of America by 0.3% in the 4th quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 112,183 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock valued at $9,834,000 after buying an additional 352 shares during the period. New York State Teachers Retirement System grew its stake in shares of Oil-Dri Corporation Of America by 98.0% during the first quarter. New York State Teachers Retirement System now owns 891 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock worth $41,000 after purchasing an additional 441 shares during the period. Wells Fargo & Company MN grew its stake in shares of Oil-Dri Corporation Of America by 2.4% during the fourth quarter. Wells Fargo & Company MN now owns 24,894 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock worth $2,182,000 after purchasing an additional 594 shares during the period. Finally, Millennium Management LLC grew its stake in shares of Oil-Dri Corporation Of America by 14.5% during the fourth quarter. Millennium Management LLC now owns 7,175 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock worth $629,000 after purchasing an additional 909 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 49.01% of the company's stock.

Oil-Dri Corporation Of America Stock Down 1.9%

Shares of Oil-Dri Corporation Of America stock traded down $1.13 during trading on Monday, reaching $58.10. The stock had a trading volume of 14,719 shares, compared to its average volume of 46,267. Oil-Dri Corporation Of America has a 52 week low of $30.99 and a 52 week high of $63.82. The company has a market capitalization of $850.39 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of 17.04 and a beta of 0.65. The company has a current ratio of 2.83, a quick ratio of 1.85 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.16. The stock has a fifty day moving average price of $56.03 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $48.26.

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

Oil-Dri Corporation Of America Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, August 22nd. Shareholders of record on Friday, August 8th will be given a dividend of $0.18 per share. This represents a $0.72 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.24%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, August 8th. This is an increase from Oil-Dri Corporation Of America's previous quarterly dividend of $0.16. Oil-Dri Corporation Of America's payout ratio is 21.18%.

Insider Activity

In related news, Director Amy Ryan sold 1,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, July 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $60.62, for a total transaction of $60,620.00. Following the sale, the director owned 2,900 shares of the company's stock, valued at $175,798. This represents a 25.64% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, VP Christopher B. Lamson sold 2,500 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Monday, July 21st. The stock was sold at an average price of $61.75, for a total value of $154,375.00. Following the sale, the vice president owned 11,453 shares of the company's stock, valued at $707,222.75. The trade was a 17.92% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last quarter, insiders have sold 6,000 shares of company stock valued at $354,570. 11.66% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Separately, Wall Street Zen cut Oil-Dri Corporation Of America from a "strong-buy" rating to a "buy" rating in a research note 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.