Miracle Mile Advisors LLC Makes New $939,000 Investment in Oil-Dri Co. of America (NYSE:ODC)

Miracle Mile Advisors LLC purchased a new position in shares of Oil-Dri Co. of America (NYSE:ODC - Free Report) during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor purchased 14,000 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock, valued at approximately $939,000. Miracle Mile Advisors LLC owned about 0.19% of Oil-Dri Co. of America as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of ODC. Bank of New York Mellon Corp increased its stake in shares of Oil-Dri Co. of America by 14.5% during the 1st quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 90,142 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock worth $2,583,000 after purchasing an additional 11,387 shares during the last quarter. BlackRock Inc. increased its stake in shares of Oil-Dri Co. of America by 3.6% during the 1st quarter. BlackRock Inc. now owns 312,573 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock worth $8,956,000 after purchasing an additional 10,918 shares during the last quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP grew its stake in Oil-Dri Co. of America by 1.8% in the 1st quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 388,803 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock valued at $11,139,000 after buying an additional 6,919 shares during the last quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. grew its stake in Oil-Dri Co. of America by 4.5% in the 1st quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 374,454 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock valued at $10,729,000 after buying an additional 16,279 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Gamco Investors INC. ET AL grew its stake in Oil-Dri Co. of America by 1.8% in the 1st quarter. Gamco Investors INC. ET AL now owns 480,437 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock valued at $13,765,000 after buying an additional 8,376 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 49.01% of the company's stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Separately, StockNews.com upgraded shares of Oil-Dri Co. of America from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research note on Wednesday, December 20th.

Insider Transactions at Oil-Dri Co. of America

In other news, VP Aaron Christiansen sold 1,070 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, January 16th. The shares were sold at an average price of $66.31, for a total transaction of $70,951.70. Following the completion of the transaction, the vice president now directly owns 20,000 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $1,326,200. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. 12.28% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Oil-Dri Co. of America Stock Performance

Oil-Dri Co. of America stock traded down $0.98 during mid-day trading on Tuesday, reaching $72.01. The company had a trading volume of 10,557 shares, compared to its average volume of 14,118. The company has a quick ratio of 2.02, a current ratio of 3.02 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.16. Oil-Dri Co. of America has a 52 week low of $36.84 and a 52 week high of $78.09. The company has a 50 day moving average of $69.67 and a 200-day moving average of $64.82. The firm has a market cap of $524.95 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of 11.79 and a beta of 0.65.

Oil-Dri Co. of America (NYSE:ODC - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, March 7th. The specialty chemicals company reported $1.77 earnings per share for the quarter. Oil-Dri Co. of America had a net margin of 10.14% and a return on equity of 26.98%. The firm had revenue of $105.67 million during the quarter.

Oil-Dri Co. of America Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, May 24th. Stockholders of record on Friday, May 10th will be issued a dividend of $0.29 per share. This represents a $1.16 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.61%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, May 9th. Oil-Dri Co. of America's payout ratio is 18.99%.

About Oil-Dri Co. of America

Oil-Dri Corporation of America, together with its subsidiaries, develops, manufactures, and markets sorbent products in the United States and internationally. It operates in two segments, Retail and Wholesale Products Group, and Business to Business Products Group. The company provides agricultural and horticultural products, including mineral-based absorbent products that serve as carriers for biological and chemical active ingredients, drying agents, and growing media under the Agsorb, Verge, and Flo-Fre brand names.