GAMMA Investing LLC Invests $116,000 in Darden Restaurants, Inc. (NYSE:DRI)

GAMMA Investing LLC acquired a new position in Darden Restaurants, Inc. (NYSE:DRI) in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor acquired 715 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock, valued at approximately $116,000.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of the stock. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. grew its position in shares of Darden Restaurants by 2.1% during the third quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 2,576,948 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock valued at $369,070,000 after purchasing an additional 52,864 shares in the last quarter. Victory Capital Management Inc. raised its stake in Darden Restaurants by 9.6% in the third quarter. Victory Capital Management Inc. now owns 2,290,224 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock worth $328,006,000 after buying an additional 200,342 shares in the last quarter. Raymond James & Associates raised its stake in Darden Restaurants by 7.3% in the fourth quarter. Raymond James & Associates now owns 1,968,301 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock worth $323,392,000 after buying an additional 134,098 shares in the last quarter. Morgan Stanley raised its stake in Darden Restaurants by 13.8% in the third quarter. Morgan Stanley now owns 1,669,789 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock worth $239,148,000 after buying an additional 202,139 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Wellington Management Group LLP raised its stake in Darden Restaurants by 0.6% in the third quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 1,639,513 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock worth $234,811,000 after buying an additional 9,232 shares in the last quarter. 93.64% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, SVP Matthew R. Broad sold 4,707 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, April 25th. The shares were sold at an average price of $156.15, for a total transaction of $734,998.05. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president now owns 19,179 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,994,800.85. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. In related news, Director William S. Simon sold 1,219 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, April 8th. The shares were sold at an average price of $158.21, for a total transaction of $192,857.99. Following the completion of the sale, the director now owns 6,281 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $993,717.01. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, SVP Matthew R. Broad sold 4,707 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, April 25th. The shares were sold at an average price of $156.15, for a total transaction of $734,998.05. Following the sale, the senior vice president now directly owns 19,179 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,994,800.85. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 20,430 shares of company stock worth $3,313,120 in the last 90 days. Insiders own 0.85% of the company’s stock.

Darden Restaurants Trading Down 0.3 %

Shares of Darden Restaurants stock opened at $156.10 on Monday. The firm has a 50-day simple moving average of $164.55 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $159.53. The company has a market cap of $18.63 billion, a P/E ratio of 18.30, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.72 and a beta of 1.25. Darden Restaurants, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $133.36 and a fifty-two week high of $176.84. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.63, a quick ratio of 0.25 and a current ratio of 0.39.

Darden Restaurants (NYSE:DRI) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, March 21st. The restaurant operator reported $2.62 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.63 by ($0.01). The firm had revenue of $2.97 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.02 billion. Darden Restaurants had a return on equity of 49.94% and a net margin of 9.24%. The company’s revenue was up 6.8% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the company posted $2.34 EPS. As a group, equities analysts predict that Darden Restaurants, Inc. will post 8.85 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Darden Restaurants announced that its board has authorized a stock repurchase plan on Thursday, March 21st that permits the company to repurchase $1.00 billion in shares. This repurchase authorization permits the restaurant operator to reacquire up to 5% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares repurchase plans are generally an indication that the company’s board of directors believes its stock is undervalued.

Darden Restaurants Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, May 1st. Investors of record on Wednesday, April 10th will be given a dividend of $1.31 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, April 9th. This represents a $5.24 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.36%. Darden Restaurants’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 61.43%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities analysts recently commented on DRI shares. Truist Financial reaffirmed a “buy” rating and issued a $190.00 price target on shares of Darden Restaurants in a report on Friday, March 22nd. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their price target on shares of Darden Restaurants from $170.00 to $180.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Tuesday, March 19th. Stifel Nicolaus lifted their price target on shares of Darden Restaurants from $185.00 to $190.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, March 19th. StockNews.com lowered shares of Darden Restaurants from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Thursday, January 4th. Finally, Morgan Stanley cut their price target on shares of Darden Restaurants from $184.00 to $180.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, March 22nd. Five equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and fifteen have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $178.85.

Darden Restaurants Profile

Darden Restaurants, Inc, together with its subsidiaries, owns and operates full-service restaurants in the United States and Canada. It operates under Olive Garden, LongHorn Steakhouse, Cheddar's Scratch Kitchen, Yard House, The Capital Grille, Seasons 52, Bahama Breeze, Eddie V's Prime Seafood, and Capital Burger brand names.