CLMT vs DAR: Which Is the Better Buy in 2026?

Same yardstick, side by side (as of November 2026). Valuation lined up like this is most meaningful for two names in the same corner of the market, which these are. Figures are approximate; verify before investing.

Reading it: DAR is the cheaper of the two on forward earnings, but cheaper is not the same as better. Pair the valuation with growth (how far the forward P/E sits below the trailing P/E) and risk (beta) before you decide.

The metrics above tell you which is the marginally better business. The bigger risk for most people is not picking the slightly worse stock, it is over-concentrating. CLMT and DAR share themes, so owning both, or adding either to what you already hold, can quietly push a large share of your portfolio into one bet.

This is the part a generic comparison page cannot answer, because it depends on what you own. Connect your brokerage and Walnut shows your real, combined CLMT and DAR exposure, flags overlap with your existing positions, and tells you if adding one would tip you past a concentration you are comfortable with, read-only by default, with your login staying at your broker. Walnut is not an investment adviser.

Calumet runs three reportable businesses. Specialty Products and Solutions is the historic core: solvents, waxes, white oils, petrolatums, gels, esters and customised lubricating oils sold into industrial, personal care and packaging end markets, made mostly at the Shreveport, Louisiana complex plus a handful of smaller plants. Performance Brands is the smaller but far higher margin piece, blending and packaging finished products under the Royal Purple, Bel-Ray and TruFuel names. Montana/Renewables covers the Great Falls, Montana site, where renewable feedstocks are converted into renewable diesel, sustainable aviation fuel, renewable hydrogen, renewable naphtha and renewable propane, alongside a specialty asphalt operation. For roughly two decades this was Calumet Specialty Products Partners, L.P., a master limited partnership that sent unitholders a K-1 and, until 2016, a quarterly distribution. It converted to a Delaware corporation, Calumet, Inc., in July 2024. That swap removed the K-1, made the shares eligible for index funds and institutions that cannot hold partnership units, and turned CLMT into an ordinary Nasdaq-listed common stock.

Full CLMT guide

Darling Ingredients is the world's largest publicly traded processor of animal byproducts and food waste, turning materials that would otherwise be discarded into useful ingredients and renewable energy. The company collects used cooking oil, animal fat, bone, blood, feathers, and other byproducts from meat processors, restaurants, and grocers, then renders and refines them into proteins, fats, gelatin, fertilizers, and feedstocks. Its Feed segment produces animal feed ingredients and pet-food proteins, while the Food segment, led by the Rousselot business, is a leading maker of gelatin and collagen used in pharmaceuticals, food, and health products. Darling's most prominent growth driver is Diamond Green Diesel, a renewable-diesel and sustainable-aviation-fuel joint venture with Valero that converts low-carbon fats and oils into clean transportation fuel. The company earns revenue from selling these ingredients globally and from renewable fuel volumes plus associated low-carbon credits. Darling is headquartered in Irving, Texas, and operates rendering and processing plants across the Americas, Europe, and Asia.

Full DAR guide

Both fit overlapping themes, but they are not interchangeable. The useful comparison is which set of drivers and risks you want exposure to.

• CLMT drivers: Sustainable aviation fuel volumes stepping up; Renewable fuel policy and credit economics.
• DAR drivers: Renewable diesel and SAF; Vertically integrated feedstock supply.

A faster-growing, richer-valued name usually swings harder, so it suits a longer horizon and a higher tolerance for volatility; a steadier, more cash-generative business suits a more conservative or income-minded investor. The honest test is which set of risks you could hold through a drawdown: Leverage is the first thing to look at: roughly $2.37 billion of debt against a company that has not produced consistent GAAP profits. For DAR, darling's earnings are highly exposed to volatile commodity and fuel prices, including fats, oils, soybean oil, and renewable-fuel margins.

Growth-minded investors who believe the theme has years to run tend to accept the richer multiple for more upside; value-minded investors lean toward the cheaper forward earnings and steadier profile. Pick CLMT if you believe its drivers more; DAR if you believe its. Many investors hold both, but since they share themes, that is a concentrated bet, not diversification. Decide deliberately and check overlap. For the full detail, see the CLMT and DAR guides.

CLMT. Standard earnings multiples barely compute here: trailing net income is negative and the forward P/E is about 90 times 2027 consensus EPS of $0.63, so the market prices CLMT on enterprise value (roughly $7.3 billion including debt) against future EBITDA from the expanded SAF capacity and a supportive credit environment. After a near-200% one-year run, the $56.85 close sits above the five-analyst mean target of about $53.40. The company's headline profitability metric includes tax credits, which is not the same thing as operating cash flow.

DAR. Darling's valuation is cyclical and heavily tied to renewable-diesel and feedstock spreads, so reported multiples swing with the fuel-margin cycle. At about 9.6 times forward earnings and 12 times EV to EBITDA, the stock prices in some of the 2026 recovery but assumes analysts' expectation of lower 2027 EPS (about $6.24 versus about $7.04 for 2026). Policy shifts and fuel-spread volatility keep the financial profile lumpier than a typical consumer-staples ingredient company.

Headline figures (approximate, October 2026): CLMT shows revenue (ttm) ~$4.6 billion, revenue growth (q2 2026, yoy) ~41%, net income (ttm) ~-$137 million (~-$1.55 per share), q2 2026 adjusted eps $0.68 vs $0.16 estimate; DAR shows revenue (ttm) ~$6.55 billion; Q2 2026 up ~16% year over year, latest quarter (q2 2026) Revenue ~$1.72 billion; net income ~$387 million; EPS $2.49 vs ~$1.48 expected, operating margin ~13% (TTM), cyclical, ebitda (ttm) ~$1.13 billion, varies with fuel margins.

CLMT and DAR are related but distinct: same themes, different businesses and risks. Neither wins in the abstract; the right pick is whichever thesis you actually believe, sized so you are not over-concentrated in one theme. Walnut can show your combined CLMT and DAR exposure against your real portfolio. It is not an investment adviser.