Darling Ingredients (NYSE:DAR) Shares Climb 3.7% - Still a Buy?

Key Points

• Darling Ingredients shares rose 3.7% to about $62.23, although trading volume was sharply below average. The stock has a market capitalization of $9.85 billion and a P/E ratio of 16.82.
• Analysts maintain a “Moderate Buy” consensus with an average price target of $72.40; recent actions included upgrades from Jefferies and Wall Street Zen, while Zacks downgraded the stock to “hold.”
• The company’s latest quarter exceeded expectations, with EPS of $2.41 versus a $1.40 estimate and revenue up 16.4% year over year to $1.72 billion. Institutional investors own 94.44% of the shares, while recent insider activity included both a director purchase and executive sales.

Darling Ingredients Inc. (NYSE:DAR - Get Free Report) rose 3.7% during trading on Thursday. The stock traded as high as $61.27 and last traded at $62.2340. Approximately 32,110 shares changed hands during mid-day trading, a decline of 99% from the average daily volume of 2,592,927 shares. The stock had previously closed at $60.02.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of brokerages have recently weighed in on DAR. Zacks Research lowered shares of Darling Ingredients from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Friday, September 18th. Weiss Ratings raised shares of Darling Ingredients from a "hold (c)" rating to a "hold (c+)" rating in a research note on Tuesday, August 11th. Jefferies Financial Group raised Darling Ingredients to a "strong-buy" rating in a research report on Tuesday, September 29th. Wall Street Zen upgraded Darling Ingredients from a "buy" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a research note on Saturday, August 15th. Finally, Barclays lifted their price target on Darling Ingredients from $62.00 to $65.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a research report on Monday, August 3rd. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eight have assigned a Buy rating and three have given a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $72.40.

Darling Ingredients Price Performance

The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.73, a current ratio of 1.56 and a quick ratio of 1.03. The firm's 50 day moving average is $63.64 and its 200 day moving average is $61.06. The firm has a market cap of $9.85 billion, a P/E ratio of 16.82 and a beta of 1.04.

Darling Ingredients (NYSE:DAR - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, July 30th. The company reported $2.41 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $1.40 by $1.01. Darling Ingredients had a net margin of 9.13% and a return on equity of 12.98%. The business had revenue of $1.72 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.71 billion. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $0.08 earnings per share. The business's revenue for the quarter was up 16.4% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, analysts anticipate that Darling Ingredients Inc. will post 7.28 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, Director Charles L. Adair bought 1,000 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Friday, July 31st. The shares were purchased at an average cost of $60.97 per share, with a total value of $60,970.00. Following the completion of the purchase, the director owned 51,690 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,151,539.30. The trade was a 1.97% increase in their position. The purchase was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, EVP Patrick McNutt sold 8,000 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Friday, August 14th. The shares were sold at an average price of $67.09, for a total value of $536,720.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president owned 35,777 shares of the company's stock, valued at $2,400,278.93. The trade was a 18.27% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Insiders sold 10,591 shares of company stock worth $704,303 in the last 90 days. Corporate insiders own 1.90% of the company's stock.

Institutional Trading of Darling Ingredients

Institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the company. Elevation Wealth Partners LLC increased its stake in Darling Ingredients by 2,474.3% during the 3rd quarter. Elevation Wealth Partners LLC now owns 901 shares of the company's stock valued at $55,000 after purchasing an additional 866 shares in the last quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc grew its holdings in shares of Darling Ingredients by 793.5% during the third quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc now owns 3,824 shares of the company's stock valued at $232,000 after buying an additional 3,396 shares during the last quarter. QRG Capital Management Inc. grew its holdings in shares of Darling Ingredients by 5.0% during the second quarter. QRG Capital Management Inc. now owns 7,444 shares of the company's stock valued at $407,000 after buying an additional 357 shares during the last quarter. Sequoia Financial Advisors LLC increased its position in shares of Darling Ingredients by 8.3% during the second quarter. Sequoia Financial Advisors LLC now owns 8,485 shares of the company's stock valued at $463,000 after acquiring an additional 651 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Tidal Investments LLC increased its position in shares of Darling Ingredients by 253.5% during the second quarter. Tidal Investments LLC now owns 50,560 shares of the company's stock valued at $2,762,000 after acquiring an additional 36,256 shares in the last quarter. 94.44% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

About Darling Ingredients

Darling Ingredients Inc is a global developer and producer of sustainable ingredients created from animal by-products, food waste and used cooking oil. The company collects and transforms these materials into products used in animal feed, pet food, agriculture, food, fuel and other industrial applications.

Its products include rendered fats and proteins, specialty feed ingredients, fertilizer inputs, collagen and gelatin, and bioenergy feedstocks. Through its renewable diesel operations, including the Diamond Green Diesel joint venture, Darling also converts low-carbon waste fats and oils into renewable fuel.

Founded in 1882, Darling Ingredients has grown from a U.S.

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