Oil-Dri Corporation Of America (NYSE:ODC) Sees Significant Increase in Short Interest

Key Points

• Oil-Dri Corporation Of America experienced a significant increase in short interest of 24.2% in August, totaling 194,700 shares short sold.
• The stock opened at $67.79 and has a market cap of $992.45 million, with a PE ratio of 19.94.
• Insider transactions revealed that executives have sold a total of 6,000 shares, indicating a decrease in their ownership stake.

Oil-Dri Corporation Of America (NYSE:ODC - Get Free Report) was the recipient of a large growth in short interest in the month of August. As of August 31st, there was short interest totaling 194,700 shares, a growth of 24.2% from the August 15th total of 156,800 shares. Based on an average trading volume of 74,100 shares, the short-interest ratio is currently 2.6 days. Approximately 1.5% of the shares of the stock are short sold. Approximately 1.5% of the shares of the stock are short sold. Based on an average trading volume of 74,100 shares, the short-interest ratio is currently 2.6 days.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

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

Oil-Dri Corporation Of America Price Performance

Shares of NYSE ODC traded down $1.50 on Monday, hitting $63.88. The company's stock had a trading volume of 46,076 shares, compared to its average volume of 51,273. Oil-Dri Corporation Of America has a 12-month low of $32.15 and a 12-month high of $69.75. The company has a market capitalization of $935.20 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of 18.73 and a beta of 0.69. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.16, a current ratio of 2.83 and a quick ratio of 1.85. The stock has a 50 day moving average of $60.78 and a 200-day moving average of $53.24.

Insider Transactions at Oil-Dri Corporation Of America

In other news, Director Amy Ryan sold 1,000 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated 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 directly owned 2,900 shares in the company, valued at $175,798. This trade represents a 25.64% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, VP Christopher B. Lamson sold 2,500 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Monday, July 21st. The shares were 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 in the company, valued at $707,222.75. This trade represents a 17.92% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 11.66% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Oil-Dri Corporation Of America

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the company. State of Wyoming purchased a new position in shares of Oil-Dri Corporation Of America during the second quarter valued at approximately $433,000. State of Tennessee Department of Treasury purchased a new position in shares of Oil-Dri Corporation Of America in the 2nd quarter valued at $169,000. Tidal Investments LLC purchased a new position in shares of Oil-Dri Corporation Of America in the 2nd quarter valued at $461,000. BNP Paribas Financial Markets raised its stake in shares of Oil-Dri Corporation Of America by 156.2% in the 2nd quarter. BNP Paribas Financial Markets now owns 8,786 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock valued at $518,000 after acquiring an additional 5,357 shares during the period. Finally, Bank of America Corp DE raised its stake in shares of Oil-Dri Corporation Of America by 5.0% in the 2nd quarter. Bank of America Corp DE now owns 11,890 shares of the specialty chemicals company's stock valued at $701,000 after acquiring an additional 561 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 49.01% of the company's stock.

About Oil-Dri Corporation 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.