Comerica Bank Decreases Stake in Darling Ingredients Inc. $DAR

Key Points

• Comerica Bank has decreased its stake in Darling Ingredients Inc. by 9.8%, now owning approximately 140,074 shares valued at $4.4 million.
• CEO Randall C. Stuewe sold 35,000 shares of the company at a total value of over $1 million, reducing his ownership by 4.29%.
• Analysts have mixed ratings for Darling Ingredients, with one upgrade to "strong-buy" and a price target range between $36 and $54 from various financial institutions.

Comerica Bank trimmed its position in shares of Darling Ingredients Inc. (NYSE:DAR - Free Report) by 9.8% during the first quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 140,074 shares of the company's stock after selling 15,291 shares during the quarter. Comerica Bank owned 0.09% of Darling Ingredients worth $4,376,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of DAR. Barrow Hanley Mewhinney & Strauss LLC raised its position in Darling Ingredients by 148.9% in the 4th quarter. Barrow Hanley Mewhinney & Strauss LLC now owns 4,393,153 shares of the company's stock valued at $148,005,000 after buying an additional 2,627,785 shares during the last quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP raised its position in Darling Ingredients by 15.9% in the 1st quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 7,480,803 shares of the company's stock valued at $233,701,000 after buying an additional 1,026,958 shares during the last quarter. American Century Companies Inc. raised its position in Darling Ingredients by 155.5% in the 1st quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 1,479,369 shares of the company's stock valued at $46,215,000 after buying an additional 900,461 shares during the last quarter. Gates Capital Management Inc. raised its position in Darling Ingredients by 11.4% in the 4th quarter. Gates Capital Management Inc. now owns 6,668,443 shares of the company's stock valued at $224,660,000 after buying an additional 682,529 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Atlantic Investment Management Inc. purchased a new stake in Darling Ingredients in the 4th quarter valued at $19,845,000. 94.44% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, CEO Randall C. Stuewe sold 35,000 shares of Darling Ingredients stock in a transaction dated Monday, August 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $30.92, for a total value of $1,082,200.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer owned 781,437 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $24,162,032.04. This trade represents a 4.29% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Company insiders own 2.62% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research firms recently commented on DAR. Jefferies Financial Group increased their price target on Darling Ingredients from $45.00 to $46.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Monday, July 7th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. assumed coverage on Darling Ingredients in a research report on Wednesday, August 20th. They issued an "overweight" rating and a $43.00 price target for the company. Robert W. Baird restated a "neutral" rating and issued a $36.00 price objective (down previously from $40.00) on shares of Darling Ingredients in a research note on Friday, July 25th. Baird R W lowered Darling Ingredients from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Friday, July 25th. Finally, Tudor Pickering raised Darling Ingredients from a "hold" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a research report on Wednesday, June 11th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, five have issued a Buy rating and three have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $43.57.

Darling Ingredients Stock Performance

Shares of Darling Ingredients stock traded down $0.33 during trading hours on Thursday, hitting $31.57. 2,569,141 shares of the company's stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 2,097,362. The company has a fifty day simple moving average of $34.32 and a 200-day simple moving average of $33.34. Darling Ingredients Inc. has a 12-month low of $26.00 and a 12-month high of $43.49. The stock has a market capitalization of $4.99 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 47.83 and a beta of 1.16. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.84, a current ratio of 1.50 and a quick ratio of 0.89.

Darling Ingredients (NYSE:DAR - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, July 24th. The company reported $0.09 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.12 by ($0.03). Darling Ingredients had a return on equity of 2.35% and a net margin of 1.85%.The firm had revenue of $1.48 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $1.49 billion. During the same period last year, the business posted $0.49 EPS. The company's revenue was up 1.8% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities research analysts anticipate that Darling Ingredients Inc. will post 2.81 EPS for the current fiscal year.

About Darling Ingredients

Darling Ingredients Inc develops, produces, and sells natural ingredients from edible and inedible bio-nutrients in North America, Europe, China, South America, and internationally. The company operates through three segments: Feed Ingredients, Food Ingredients, and Fuel Ingredients. It offers ingredients and customized specialty solutions for customers in the pharmaceutical, food, pet food, feed, industrial, fuel, bioenergy, and fertilizer industries.