Insider Buying: Darling Ingredients Inc. (NYSE:DAR) EVP Buys 2,532 Shares of Stock

Darling Ingredients Inc. (NYSE:DAR) EVP Robert W. Day purchased 2,532 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, July 31st. The shares were bought at an average price of $39.37 per share, with a total value of $99,684.84. Following the purchase, the executive vice president now owns 12,607 shares in the company, valued at $496,337.59. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink.

Darling Ingredients Price Performance

Shares of NYSE DAR traded down $0.78 during mid-day trading on Thursday, reaching $38.95. 2,123,518 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 2,265,141. Darling Ingredients Inc. has a 52 week low of $33.94 and a 52 week high of $69.63. The company has a quick ratio of 0.96, a current ratio of 1.67 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.93. The stock has a market capitalization of $6.22 billion, a PE ratio of 11.67 and a beta of 1.26. The company’s 50 day moving average price is $37.58 and its 200 day moving average price is $41.58.

Darling Ingredients (NYSE:DAR) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, July 25th. The company reported $0.49 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.39 by $0.10. The company had revenue of $1.46 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.46 billion. Darling Ingredients had a net margin of 6.04% and a return on equity of 8.35%. The firm’s revenue was down 17.2% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $1.55 EPS. Sell-side analysts forecast that Darling Ingredients Inc. will post 2.47 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Darling Ingredients

A number of large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in DAR. Raymond James Financial Services Advisors Inc. raised its position in Darling Ingredients by 55.4% in the 4th quarter. Raymond James Financial Services Advisors Inc. now owns 109,883 shares of the company’s stock worth $5,477,000 after purchasing an additional 39,175 shares during the period. Fifth Third Bancorp increased its position in shares of Darling Ingredients by 6.9% in the fourth quarter. Fifth Third Bancorp now owns 5,702 shares of the company’s stock valued at $284,000 after acquiring an additional 366 shares during the period. Oak Thistle LLC increased its position in shares of Darling Ingredients by 145.8% in the fourth quarter. Oak Thistle LLC now owns 13,647 shares of the company’s stock valued at $680,000 after acquiring an additional 8,094 shares during the period. State of Michigan Retirement System increased its position in shares of Darling Ingredients by 10.5% in the fourth quarter. State of Michigan Retirement System now owns 42,174 shares of the company’s stock valued at $2,102,000 after acquiring an additional 4,000 shares during the period. Finally, DAVENPORT & Co LLC purchased a new position in shares of Darling Ingredients in the fourth quarter valued at about $845,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 94.44% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities research analysts have recently issued reports on DAR shares. Scotiabank decreased their price target on shares of Darling Ingredients from $57.00 to $45.00 and set a “sector outperform” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, July 12th. Citigroup raised shares of Darling Ingredients from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $48.00 price objective for the company in a report on Wednesday, June 12th. TD Cowen cut their price objective on shares of Darling Ingredients from $51.00 to $45.00 and set a “hold” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, June 13th. Stifel Nicolaus cut their price objective on shares of Darling Ingredients from $90.00 to $85.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Monday, May 20th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group cut their price objective on shares of Darling Ingredients from $53.00 to $47.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Friday, July 26th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have issued a hold rating, seven have issued a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Darling Ingredients currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $64.27.

Darling Ingredients Company Profile

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.