Filing Flows › Oil-Dri Corp of America (ODC) › Takeover & LBO
Is Oil-Dri Corp of America (ODC) a takeover target?
A leveraged buyout at today's price plus 30% ($111.77 a share) would return a loss of about 3% a year to a private-equity buyer over 5 years; no price, however low, gets a buyer to 20%. Historically 6.0% of companies with its figures were bought within a year (1.19× the average).
The buyout, step by step
| Entry | Amount | How |
|---|---|---|
| Offer price a share | $111.77 | today's $85.98 plus 30% |
| × shares | 7.3 million | |
| = Equity value | $817M | |
| + Debt refinanced | $0 | |
| − Cash | $73.7M | |
| = Enterprise value | $743M | 8.2× EBITDA of $91.2M |
| Fees | $14.9M | 2% of the price |
| New debt | $483M | 5.3× EBITDA at 7.65% a year; the limit that binds: 65% of the price |
| Buyer's own money | $275M | 36% of the cost |
5 years under the buyer
| Year | Revenue | EBITDA | Interest | Free cash flow | Debt left |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Year 1 | $502M | $92.7M | $37.0M | $14.3M | $469M |
| Year 2 | $512M | $94.6M | $35.9M | $16.0M | $453M |
| Year 3 | $524M | $96.8M | $34.6M | $17.9M | $435M |
| Year 4 | $539M | $99.4M | $33.3M | $20.1M | $415M |
| Year 5 | $555M | $102M | $31.7M | $22.6M | $392M |
The exit and the buyer's return
| Exit | Amount | |
|---|---|---|
| Exit multiple | 6.1× EBITDA | today's trading multiple, before any premium |
| Enterprise value at exit | $623M | |
| − Debt left | $392M | |
| = Buyer's equity | $231M | |
| Money multiple | 0.84× | on $275M put in |
| Buyer's yearly return (IRR) | −3.4% |
Price against return
What the buyer makes at other premiums over today's $85.98.
| Premium | Price a share | Buyer's IRR |
|---|---|---|
| 10% | $94.58 | 8.4% |
| 20% | $103.18 | 2.6% |
| 30% | $111.77 | −3.4% |
| 40% | $120.37 | −8.5% |
| 50% | $128.97 | −11.7% |
The figures used
| Figure | Amount | |
|---|---|---|
| Revenue, last 12 months | $494M | |
| EBITDA, last 12 months | $91.2M | 18.5% of revenue |
| Depreciation and amortization | $23.2M | |
| Capital spending | $34.2M | |
| Debt | $0 | |
| Cash | $73.7M | |
| Share price | $85.98 | on Oct 9, 2026 |
Fixed rules, the same as the interactive view's starting point: the shares are bought at today's price plus 30%, the company's debt is refinanced and fees take 2%. New debt is the least of 5.5× EBITDA, 65% of the price and the amount whose interest EBITDA covers 2 times, at 7.65% a year (SOFR 3.89% plus the high-yield B spread 3.26% plus 0.5%, rates of Oct 15, 2026). Revenue grows 1.7% in the first year — the company's own rate, held between −3% and +8% — fading to 3% by year 5; the EBITDA margin, depreciation and capital spending stay at today's share of revenue; working capital takes 10% of each year's added revenue; tax is 18% of profit after interest. Every dollar of free cash flow repays debt. After 5 years the buyer sells at today's multiple of EBITDA.
What a takeover could cost
Takeovers on record paid a median premium of 32.5% over the share price before the deal (the middle half 20% to 51.8%), according to the 1,437 merger proxies and tender-offer responses on EDGAR that state a premium. At the median, Oil-Dri Corp of America would cost about $113.92 a share, $833M for all its shares.
| Premium | % | Price a share | All shares |
|---|---|---|---|
| Low end (a quarter of deals paid less) | 20% | $103.18 | $754M |
| Median | 32.5% | $113.92 | $833M |
| High end (a quarter paid more) | 51.8% | $130.52 | $954M |
The odds, from history
Historically 6.0% of companies with its figures were bought within a year (1.19× the average). Its figures put it in decile 8 of 10 (10 = the most likely to be bought). The odds come from a model of every merger proxy, tender-offer response and going-private statement filed on EDGAR since 2011, set against each company's size, margins, debt, cash flow and growth the year before.
Oil-Dri Corp of America's latest quarter
Oil-Dri Corp of America, Q4 FY26: revenue $129M (+3% year over year), operating margin 14.1%, net earnings $14.4M, operating cash flow $26.9M. The chart follows the revenue to costs, profit and cash.
Questions
Is Oil-Dri Corp of America being acquired?
No headline, 8-K or 13D about a sale is on file in the last year.
Could private equity buy Oil-Dri Corp of America?
A leveraged buyout at today's price plus 30% ($111.77 a share) would return a loss of about 3% a year to a private-equity buyer over 5 years; no price, however low, gets a buyer to 20%.
What would a takeover of Oil-Dri Corp of America cost?
Takeovers on record paid a median premium of 32.5% over the share price before the deal (the middle half 20% to 51.8%), according to the 1,437 merger proxies and tender-offer responses on EDGAR that state a premium. At the median, Oil-Dri Corp of America would cost about $113.92 a share, $833M for all its shares.
Updated Nov 8, 2026. Read automatically from SEC filings and public data; errors are possible. Not investment advice.