DAR vs SFD: Darling Ingredients and Smithfield Foods compared
The short version
From the latest prices and each company's SEC filings. Who's ahead on each measure, not which to buy.
- Darling Ingredients is the larger company, worth $9.6B, about 1.3 times Smithfield Foods.
- Darling Ingredients grew revenue faster over the last year (+16.4% vs -2.3%).
- Darling Ingredients keeps more of each dollar of revenue as operating profit (14.5% vs 8.6%).
- On earnings, Smithfield Foods is the cheaper stock (7.6x vs 43.7x).
- Darling Ingredients's price assumes faster free cash flow growth: about 0% a year, against -3% for Smithfield Foods (reverse DCF).
Side by side
The stronger figure is shaded where higher (or, for valuation multiples, lower) reads as better. How the implied growth works.
| Measure | DAR | SFD |
|---|---|---|
| Market cap | $9.6B | $7.7B |
| Share price | $60.26 | $18.61 |
| Revenue (last fiscal year) | $6.1B | $15.5B |
| Free cash flow (last fiscal year) | $679M | $718M |
| Revenue growth, last year | +16.4% | -2.3% |
| Revenue growth per year, last 5 fiscal years | +6.7% | +0.7% |
| Operating margin | 14.5% | 8.6% |
| Net margin | 9.1% | 6.8% |
| Return on equity | 11.4% | 15.1% |
| P/E (trailing) | 43.7x | 7.58x |
| Price / free cash flow | 14.1x | 10.7x |
| EV / EBITDA | 9.24x | 5.09x |
| FCF growth the price implies | 0.43% | -3.3% |
| Dividend yield | — | 5.5% |
| Debt / equity | 1.08x | 0.72x |
| Fundamental grade | C | C |
| Superinvestors holding it | 4 | 2 |
| Insider purchases, last 12 months | 0 | 0 |
Results from SEC filings
Revenue and free cash flow by fiscal year, from each company's 10-K filings.
Darling Ingredients
| Year | Revenue | Free cash flow | Op. margin |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2021 | $4.7B | $430M | 18.7% |
| 2022 | $6.5B | $422M | 15.8% |
| 2023 | $6.8B | $344M | 14.0% |
| 2024 | $5.7B | $507M | 8.2% |
| 2025 | $6.1B | $679M | 4.5% |
Smithfield Foods
| Year | Revenue | Free cash flow | Op. margin |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2015 | $14.4B | — | 5.5% |
| 2022 | $16.2B | $183M | 6.9% |
| 2023 | $14.6B | $335M | -0.38% |
| 2024 | $14.1B | $566M | 7.9% |
| 2025 | $15.5B | $718M | 8.3% |
Where the revenue comes from
Darling Ingredients · by segments, 2025
Feed Ingredients$4.0B65%
Food Ingredients$1.5B25%
Fuel Ingredients$601M10%
Smithfield Foods · by segments, 2025
Packaged Meats$8.8B56%
Fresh Pork$5.0B32%
Hog Production$1.2B8%
Other$528M3%
Compare them in fullFifteen years of statements, quarterly results, DCF and IRR models, and any number of peers side by side.
Open DAR in InvestinglyQuestions
Which is bigger, Darling Ingredients or Smithfield Foods?
Darling Ingredients (DAR), at $9.6B against $7.7B.
Is DAR or SFD cheaper?
By trailing P/E, Smithfield Foods (7.58x) is cheaper than Darling Ingredients (43.7x). A lower multiple can also mean the market expects less growth.
Which grows faster, DAR or SFD?
Darling Ingredients: revenue grew +16.4% over the last year, against -2.3%.
Prices and ratios as of the last daily update; statements from SEC filings. Information only, not investment advice.