Needham Investment Management LLC Purchases 12,500 Shares of Oil-Dri Co. of America (NYSE:ODC)

Needham Investment Management LLC lifted its stake in Oil-Dri Co. of America (NYSE:ODC - Free Report) by 4.7% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 280,000 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock after acquiring an additional 12,500 shares during the period. Oil-Dri Co. of America makes up 1.9% of Needham Investment Management LLC's portfolio, making the stock its 14th largest holding. Needham Investment Management LLC owned approximately 1.92% of Oil-Dri Co. of America worth $24,539,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of the company. JPMorgan Chase & Co. grew its stake in shares of Oil-Dri Co. of America by 12.6% in the third quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 2,401 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock worth $166,000 after acquiring an additional 268 shares during the last quarter. Tower Research Capital LLC TRC grew its stake in shares of Oil-Dri Co. of America by 973.1% in the fourth quarter. Tower Research Capital LLC TRC now owns 2,157 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock worth $189,000 after acquiring an additional 1,956 shares during the last quarter. Mariner LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Oil-Dri Co. of America in the fourth quarter worth $222,000. LPL Financial LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Oil-Dri Co. of America in the fourth quarter worth $235,000. Finally, Blair William & Co. IL acquired a new stake in shares of Oil-Dri Co. of America in the fourth quarter worth $240,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 49.01% of the company's stock.

Oil-Dri Co. of America Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:ODC traded up $1.01 on Friday, hitting $48.36. The stock had a trading volume of 43,532 shares, compared to its average volume of 41,568. Oil-Dri Co. of America has a twelve month low of $29.47 and a twelve month 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 firm's 50 day moving average price is $44.79 and its 200-day moving average price is $37.42. The company has a market capitalization of $705.84 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of 15.63 and a beta of 0.54.

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

Oil-Dri Co. of America Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, May 23rd. Stockholders of record on Friday, May 9th will be paid a $0.155 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Friday, May 9th. This represents a $0.62 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.28%. Oil-Dri Co. of America's dividend payout ratio is presently 19.81%.

Insider Activity

In related news, Director Ellen-Blair Chube sold 3,500 shares of Oil-Dri Co. of America stock in a transaction dated Monday, April 21st. The stock was sold at an average price of $42.51, for a total value of $148,785.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now directly owns 11,820 shares of the company's stock, valued at $502,468.20. The trade was a 22.85% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. 11.66% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Separately, StockNews.com upgraded shares of Oil-Dri Co. of America from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research note on Monday, April 28th.

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.