CHICAGO, IL--(Marketwired - Dec 4, 2015) - Oil-Dri Corporation of America (NYSE: ODC) today announced income for the first quarter of fiscal 2016 of $5,423,000, or $0.75 of diluted earnings per share, compared to net income of $2,120,000, or $0.30 of diluted earnings per share, in the same quarter of the prior year. Net sales in the quarter of $67,795,000 increased by 3% compared to net sales of $66,044,000 in the same quarter of the prior year. Quarterly income was a record high for the second consecutive quarter.

BUSINESS REVIEW

President and Chief Executive Officer Daniel S. Jaffee said, "Results from the first quarter were exceptional. All facets of the business contributed to the record results. Gross profit margins expanded due to increased sales of high value products, particularly Cat's Pride Fresh & Light litters, Agsorb agricultural carriers and Pure-Flo fluids purification products. It is powerful to see that the areas of our business that we have been focusing on over the past several years have begun to consistently contribute to our success."

SEGMENT REVIEW

BUSINESS TO BUSINESS  
   
First Quarter Results  
   Three Month Period      
   August 1 - October 31  Change  
   Fiscal 2016  Fiscal 2015      
Net Sales   $ 25,821,000   $ 23,648,000   9 %
Segment Income   $ 9,169,000   $ 6,871,000   33 %
                   
                   

Net sales of our Agsorb agricultural chemical carrier products, including our Verge engineered granules, increased approximately 38%. Net sales of Pure-Flo and Ultra-Clear fluids purification products to petroleum oil and edible oil processors rose approximately 3%.

Segment income improved approximately 33% due to the higher sales and lower natural gas, freight and packaging costs.

RETAIL AND WHOLESALE  
   
First Quarter Results  
   Three Month Period      
   August 1 - October 31  Change  
   Fiscal 2016  Fiscal 2015      
Net Sales   $ 41,974,000   $ 42,396,000   -1 %
Segment Income   $ 5,402,000   $ 886,000   510 %
                   
                   

The increase in sales of lightweight litter products, both branded and private label, was offset by lower sales of our traditional litter products and sales by our foreign subsidiaries. Sales of our floor absorbent products were up 1% compared to the first quarter of fiscal 2015.

Segment income improved due to a favorable product sales mix, lower natural gas, freight and packaging costs and reduced advertising and trade spending expenses.

FINANCIAL REVIEW

Cash, cash equivalents, restricted cash and short-term investments at October 31, 2015 totaled $24,401,000 compared to $22,328,000 at the end of fiscal 2015.

Cash provided by operating activities was $8,516,000 for the first quarter of fiscal 2016, which was $6,768,000 higher than the $1,748,000 for the same quarter of the prior year, due to higher net income in the first quarter of fiscal 2016 and overall positive changes in working capital.

Capital expenditures for the first quarter totaled $1,765,000, which was $1,174,000 less than depreciation and amortization of $2,939,000. By comparison, capital expenditures totaled $5,717,000 in the same quarter of the prior year.

On October 15, 2015, Oil-Dri's Board of Directors declared quarterly cash dividends of $0.21 per share of outstanding Common Stock and $0.1575 per share of outstanding Class B Stock. The dividends were paid on December 4, 2015, to stockholders of record at the close of business on November 20, 2015. The Company has paid cash dividends continuously since 1974 and has increased dividends annually for the past twelve years. At the end of the first quarter, the annualized dividend yield on the Company's Common Stock was 2.7%, based on the closing stock price on October 30, 2015 of $31.38 per share and the latest quarterly cash dividend of $0.21 per share.

LOOKING FORWARD

President and Chief Executive Officer Daniel Jaffee continued, "Looking forward, we will continue to focus on supporting and expanding our high value product lines.

"Lightweight litter is becoming increasingly popular among consumers. According to third party market research data, the cat litter category grew 3.4% in the twelve week period ending October 11, 2015, driven by the 108% growth in the Lightweight Scoopable segment. Lightweight Scoopable litter represents 14.2% of the litter category and 17.7% of the Scoopable segment and was up over 118% during the 52 week period ending October 11, 2015. Private Label Lightweight represents 1.8% of the Lightweight Scoopable segment as of October 11, 2015, up 0.5% over the prior month and Oil-Dri's share is growing.

"We are planning to roll out a new premium Cat's Pride Fresh & Light Ultimate Care cat litter product. This will involve a significant increase in our spending for advertising and trade promotions in the second half of fiscal year 2016. The new product is expected to start shipping in January.

"On the Business to Business side, we are excited that our Amlan animal health business has introduced two new products, Varium, a growth promoter for broilers, and NeoPrime, an intestinal health and immunity primer for piglets. Registration of these products in target countries is on-going. Also, demand for Verge engineered granules has reached an all-time high.

"Given the needs of our expanding businesses, we expect capital expenditures to be higher for the remainder of fiscal year 2016.

"We are looking forward to hopefully seeing many of our stockholders at our Annual Stockholders Meeting on December 8, 2015."

Oil-Dri Corporation of America is a leading supplier of specialty sorbent products for agricultural, horticultural, fluids purification, specialty, industrial and automotive markets and is a leading manufacturer of cat litter.

The Company will offer a live webcast of the first quarter earnings teleconference on Monday, December 7, 2015 from 10:00 am to 10:30 am, Central Time. To listen via the web, visit www.streetevents.com or www.oildri.com. An archived recording of the call and written transcripts of all teleconferences are posted on the Oil-Dri website.

The Company will host its 2015 Annual Meeting of Stockholders on Tuesday, December 8, 2015 starting at 9:30 am, Central Time. The meeting will be held at The Standard Club, 320 South Plymouth Court, Chicago, Illinois 60604. The record date for voting eligibility at the Annual Meeting was October 13, 2015.

"Oil-Dri," "Cat's Pride," "Fresh & Light," "Agsorb," "Pure-Flo," "Verge" and "Ultra-Clear" are registered trademarks of Oil-Dri Corporation of America. "Fresh & Light Ultimate Care," "Varium," and "NeoPrime" are trademark of Oil-Dri Corporation of America.

Certain statements in this press release may contain forward-looking statements that are based on our current expectations, estimates, forecasts and projections about our future performance, our business, our beliefs, and our management's assumptions. In addition, we, or others on our behalf, may make forward-looking statements in other press releases or written statements, or in our communications and discussions with investors and analysts in the normal course of business through meetings, webcasts, phone calls, and conference calls. Words such as "expect," "outlook," "forecast," "would", "could," "should," "project," "intend," "plan," "continue," "believe," "seek," "estimate," "anticipate, "may," "assume," variations of such words and similar expressions are intended to identify such forward-looking statements, which are made pursuant to the safe harbor provisions of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995.

Such statements are subject to certain risks, uncertainties and assumptions that could cause actual results to differ materially including, but not limited to, the dependence of our future growth and financial performance on successful new product introductions, intense competition in our markets, volatility of our quarterly results, risks associated with acquisitions, our dependence on a limited number of customers for a large portion of our net sales and other risks, uncertainties and assumptions that are described in Item 1A (Risk Factors) of our most recent Annual Report on Form 10-K and other reports we file with the Securities and Exchange Commission. Should one or more of these or other risks or uncertainties materialize, or should underlying assumptions prove incorrect, our actual results may vary materially from those anticipated, intended, expected, believed, estimated, projected or planned. You are cautioned not to place undue reliance on these forward-looking statements, which speak only as of the date of this press release. Except to the extent required by law, we do not have any intention or obligation to update publicly any forward-looking statements after the distribution of this press release, whether as a result of new information, future events, changes in assumptions, or otherwise.

   
   
CONSOLIDATED STATEMENTS OF INCOME  
(in thousands, except for per share amounts)  
(unaudited)  
   
   First Quarter Ended October 31  
   2016    % of Sales    2015    % of Sales  
Net Sales   $ 67,795     100.0 %   $ 66,044     100.0 %
Cost of Sales     (47,142 )   69.5 %     (52,275 )   79.2 %
Gross Profit     20,653     30.5 %     13,769     20.8 %
Operating Expenses     (12,877 )   19.0 %     (10,609 )   16 %
Operating Income     7,776     11.5 %     3,160     4.8 %
Interest Expense     (259 )   0.4 %     (382 )   0.6 %
Other Income     23     -- %     87     0.1 %
Income Before Income Taxes     7,540     11.1 %     2,865     4.3 %
Income Taxes     (2,117 )   3.1 %     (745 )   1.1 %
Net Income   $ 5,423     8.0 %   $ 2,120     3.2 %
Net Income Per Share:                            
 Basic Common   $ 0.82           $ 0.32        
 Basic Class B Common   $ 0.61           $ 0.24        
 Diluted   $ 0.75           $ 0.30        
Average Shares Outstanding:                            
 Basic Common     4,975             4,948        
 Basic Class B Common     2,037             2,009        
 Diluted     7,063             7,016        
 
 
 
CONSOLIDATED BALANCE SHEETS
(in thousands, except for per share amounts)
(unaudited)
             
       As of October 31
       2016  2015
Current Assets                
 Cash and Cash Equivalents       $ 21,011   $ 8,406
 Restricted Cash         --     100
 Short-term Investments         3,390     1,901
 Accounts Receivable, Net         31,889     31,893
 Inventories         21,486     24,332
 Prepaid Expenses         8,341     7,729
   Total Current Assets         86,117     74,361
Property, Plant and Equipment, Net         78,801     78,212
Other Assets         27,168     28,154
Total Assets       $ 192,086   $ 180,727
                 
Current Liabilities                
 Current Maturities of Notes Payable       $ 3,083   $ 3,483
 Accounts Payable         7,561     5,599
 Dividends Payable         1,406     1,313
 Accrued Expenses         16,694     15,548
   Total Current Liabilities         28,744     25,943
Noncurrent Liabilities                
 Notes Payable         12,333     15,417
 Other Noncurrent Liabilities         35,783     34,020
   Total Noncurrent Liabilities         48,116     49,437
Stockholders' Equity         115,226     105,347
Total Liabilities and Stockholders' Equity       $ 192,086   $ 180,727
                 
Book Value Per Share Outstanding       $ 16.43   $ 15.14
                 
Acquisitions of:                
Property, Plant and Equipment  First Quarter   $ 1,765   $ 5,717
   Year To Date   $ 1,765   $ 5,717
Depreciation and Amortization Charges  First Quarter   $ 2,939   $ 2,920
   Year To Date   $ 2,939   $ 2,920
   
   
   
CONSOLIDATED STATEMENTS OF CASH FLOWS  
(in thousands)  
(unaudited)  
             
   For the Three Months Ended  
   October 31  
   2016    2015  
CASH FLOWS FROM OPERATING ACTIVITIES                
Net Income   $ 5,423     $ 2,120  
Adjustments to reconcile net income to net cash                
provided by operating activities, net of acquisition:                
 Depreciation and Amortization     2,939       2,920  
 Increase in Accounts Receivable     (414 )     (940 )
 (Increase) Decrease in Inventories     (126 )     151  
 Increase (Decrease) in Accounts Payable     387       (1,632 )
 Increase (Decrease) in Accrued Expenses     33       (2,000 )
 Increase in Pension and Postretirement Benefits     432       357  
 Other     (158 )     772  
   Total Adjustments     3,093       (372 )
Net Cash Provided by Operating Activities     8,516       1,748  
                 
CASH FLOWS FROM INVESTING ACTIVITIES                
 Capital Expenditures     (1,765 )     (5,717 )
 Restricted Cash     --       29  
 Net Dispositions of Investment Securities     (1,200 )     740  
 Other     --       123  
Net Cash Used in Investing Activities     (2,965 )     (4,825 )
                 
CASH FLOWS FROM FINANCING ACTIVITIES                
 Principal Payments on Long-Term Debt     (3,484 )     (3,500 )
 Dividends Paid     (1,377 )     (1,311 )
 Purchase of Treasury Stock     (18 )     --  
 Other     202       25  
Net Cash Used in Financing Activities     (4,677 )     (4,786 )
                 
Effect of exchange rate changes on cash and cash equivalents     (1 )     39  
                 
Net Increase (Decrease) in Cash and Cash Equivalents     873       (7,824 )
Cash and Cash Equivalents, Beginning of Period     20,138       16,230  
Cash and Cash Equivalents, End of Period   $ 21,011     $ 8,406