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what it is
Oil-Dri mines and processes specialty clay used in cat litter, animal nutrition, purification, and industrial cleanup.
how it gets paid
Last year Oil-Dri Of Amer made $486M in revenue. cat litter was the main engine at $165M, or 34% of sales.
why it's growing
Revenue grew 11.0% last year. Annual revenue reached $486M, up 11.0% vs. prior year, while the latest quarter surged 102% vs. prior year.
what just happened
Oil-Dri posted record quarterly revenue of $238M, but the real story was that margins stayed under pressure.
At a glance
B+ balance sheet — decent shape, but not bulletproof
35/100 earnings predictability — expect surprises
14.0x trailing p/e — the market's not buying it — or you found a deal
1.3% dividend yield — cash in your pocket every quarter
17.0% return on capital — nothing to write home about
xvary composite: 63/100 — average
What they do
Oil-Dri mines and processes specialty clay used in cat litter, animal nutrition, purification, and industrial cleanup.
This business wins by sitting inside recurring, unglamorous demand. Your cat still needs litter, food producers still need purification aids, and farmers still need carriers, which helped support an 18.6% operating margin and 17.0% return on capital. Return on capital → profit earned on every dollar invested → so what: you are buying a company that has shown it can turn dull products into real cash.
How they make money
$486M
annual revenue · their business grew +11.0% last year
cat litter
$165M
bleaching clay and fluid purification aids
$117M
animal health and nutrition
$87M
agricultural and horticultural chemical carriers
$68M
industrial absorbents and sports field products
$49M
The products that matter
animal health feed additives
Amlan International
26%+ of quarterly sales
this is the growth engine management keeps pointing to. when a newer product line drives more than 26% of sales, you are looking at the part of the story trying to lift the whole margin profile.
growth mix
industrial and consumer sorbents
Business to Business
$293M · 60.3% of revenue
it is the bigger side of the company at $293M, and it grew 10% last year. scale helps, but the recent drop in segment operating income shows volume alone does not protect profit.
core cash flow
retail cat litter and absorbents
Retail & Wholesale
$193M · 39.7% of revenue
this $193M segment grew 12% last year. it keeps the company exposed to steady consumer demand, but it also leaves you exposed to freight and input-cost pressure on lower-ticket products.
consumer shelf space
Key numbers
14.0x
trailing p/e
You are paying 14 times trailing earnings for a business with double-digit sales growth and an 18.6% operating margin.
18.6%
operating margin
Operating margin → money left after running the business → so what: this company turns a boring product set into solid profit.
17.0%
return on capital
Return on capital → profit earned on invested money → so what: management has shown it can put cash to work without lighting it on fire.
$39M
long-term debt
Debt is just 4% of capital, which gives this small company room if margins wobble or growth pauses.
Financial health
B+
strength
- balance sheet grade B+ — solid but not elite
- risk rank 2 — safer than 80% of stocks
- price stability 50 / 100
- long-term debt $39M (4% of capital)
B+ — functional but not a standout on the balance sheet.
Total return vs. market
Return history isn't available for ODC right now.
source: institutional data · return history unavailable
What just happened
beat estimates
Oil-Dri posted record quarterly revenue of $238M, but the real story was that margins stayed under pressure.
Annual revenue reached $486M, up 11.0% vs. prior year, while the latest quarter surged 102% vs. prior year. Gross margin was 28.5%, which matters because revenue without margin is just a louder version of work.
$238M
revenue
$0.90
eps
28.5%
gross margin
the number that mattered
The 28.5% gross margin mattered most because this is a processing business, and even strong sales do not help much if input and freight costs eat the spread.
source: company earnings report, 2026
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What could go wrong
the #1 risk here is input cost inflation across clay, energy, and freight. this is a margin story wearing a revenue costume.
med
input cost squeeze
The recent quarter already showed the pressure: record sales, but net income still fell 3%. When your raw materials and logistics costs rise at the same time, a good revenue quarter can still be a mediocre earnings quarter.
an 18.6% operating margin on a $486M revenue base looks healthy until cost inflation starts eating it from both sides.
med
weather and operating disruption
Management cited winter storm disruption in the recent period. That sounds boring until you remember this is a physical mining, processing, and shipping business. Weather can delay production, shipments, and customer demand in the same quarter.
if operations hiccup, quarterly results can wobble even when annual demand looks intact.
med
inventory and mix reversal
Management also flagged elevated inventory. That ties up cash, raises the risk of markdowns or slower turns, and matters more if higher-margin newer products stop gaining share.
roughly $40M tied up in working capital is manageable, but it is still capital that is not earning a better return elsewhere.
three risks matter most, and they all run through profit conversion. If revenue keeps rising while operating income keeps falling, the stock will stop getting credit for growth.
source: institutional data · regulatory filings · risk analysis
Pay attention to
metric
operating margin
18.6% is the number carrying the story. If that keeps sliding while sales set records, you have a mix problem, not a demand problem.
trend
new product sales mix
More than 26% of sales came from newer products last quarter. That is the clearest signal that Oil-Dri is climbing the value chain instead of just moving more volume.
risk
clay, energy, and freight costs
This is the quiet part loud. You do not need heroic revenue growth if input costs cool. You do need it if they do not.
calendar
Amlan & Elanco Japan seminar
March 10–12, 2026. It is a small event on paper, but it points directly at the part of the business trying to earn a higher multiple.
Analyst rankings
earnings predictability
35 / 100
low predictability means the quarterly numbers can jump around more than the business headline suggests. in human-speak: do not expect smooth, metronome-like earnings.
risk rank
2
risk rank 2 means the stock screens safer than most of the market. in human-speak: the balance sheet is steady, even if the income statement gets noisy.
source: institutional data
Institutional activity
institutional ownership data for ODC is being compiled.
source: institutional data
Price targets
3-5 year target range
n/a
n/a
$52
current price
n/a
target midpoint · n/a from current
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