Darling Ingredients (NYSE:DAR) Raised to “Strong-Buy” at Jefferies Financial Group

Darling Ingredients (NYSE:DAR) was upgraded by equities researchers at Jefferies Financial Group to a “strong-buy” rating in a report issued on Tuesday, Zacks reports.

Other equities research analysts have also recently issued research reports about the company. TD Cowen raised their price objective on Darling Ingredients from $70.00 to $80.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, July 27th. Zacks Research lowered shares of Darling Ingredients from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Friday, September 18th. Wall Street Zen raised Darling Ingredients from a “buy” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Saturday, August 15th. Barclays upped their price objective on shares of Darling Ingredients from $62.00 to $65.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Monday, August 3rd. Finally, UBS Group increased their price objective on shares of Darling Ingredients from $78.00 to $88.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, September 22nd. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, nine have assigned a Buy rating and three have given a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Darling Ingredients has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $69.91.

Darling Ingredients Stock Performance

NYSE:DAR opened at $60.32 on Tuesday. The company has a current ratio of 1.56, a quick ratio of 1.03 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.73. Darling Ingredients has a twelve month low of $29.15 and a twelve month high of $69.98. The company has a market capitalization of $9.52 billion, a P/E ratio of 16.26 and a beta of 1.02. The firm has a 50-day moving average price of $63.61 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $60.83.

Darling Ingredients (NYSE:DAR) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, July 30th. The company reported $2.41 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.40 by $1.01. Darling Ingredients had a return on equity of 12.98% and a net margin of 9.13%.The firm had revenue of $1.72 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.71 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $0.08 EPS. Darling Ingredients’s quarterly revenue was up 16.4% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, research analysts expect that Darling Ingredients will post 6.98 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Transactions at Darling Ingredients

In related news, EVP Nicholas Kemphaus sold 1,591 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, August 10th. The shares were sold at an average price of $63.05, for a total transaction of $100,312.55. Following the transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 35,087 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,212,235.35. The trade was a 4.34% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, CAO Joseph Manzi sold 1,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, August 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $67.27, for a total value of $67,270.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief accounting officer directly owned 18,969 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,276,044.63. The trade was a 5.01% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. In the last 90 days, insiders sold 10,591 shares of company stock valued at $704,303. Company insiders own 1.90% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Darling Ingredients

Several large investors have recently bought and sold shares of DAR. QRG Capital Management Inc. lifted its position in Darling Ingredients by 5.0% in the second quarter. QRG Capital Management Inc. now owns 7,444 shares of the company’s stock worth $407,000 after purchasing an additional 357 shares during the period. Sequoia Financial Advisors LLC grew its position in Darling Ingredients by 8.3% during the 2nd quarter. Sequoia Financial Advisors LLC now owns 8,485 shares of the company’s stock worth $463,000 after acquiring an additional 651 shares during the last quarter. Tidal Investments LLC increased its position in Darling Ingredients by 253.5% in the 2nd 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. WINTON GROUP Ltd bought a new stake in shares of Darling Ingredients during the second quarter worth $328,000. Finally, Integrated Wealth Concepts LLC lifted its holdings in Darling Ingredients by 9.8% in the second quarter. Integrated Wealth Concepts LLC now owns 13,149 shares of the company’s stock valued at $718,000 after buying an additional 1,177 shares during the period. 94.44% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Darling Ingredients Company Profile

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.