Great Valley Advisor Group Inc. Reduces Stock Position in Darden Restaurants, Inc. (NYSE:DRI)

Great Valley Advisor Group Inc. cut its position in Darden Restaurants, Inc. (NYSE:DRI) by 7.0% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 2,167 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock after selling 162 shares during the quarter. Great Valley Advisor Group Inc.’s holdings in Darden Restaurants were worth $356,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Tokio Marine Asset Management Co. Ltd. lifted its stake in Darden Restaurants by 7.2% in the third quarter. Tokio Marine Asset Management Co. Ltd. now owns 3,338 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock worth $478,000 after purchasing an additional 224 shares during the last quarter. Prime Capital Investment Advisors LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Darden Restaurants by 19.7% during the 4th quarter. Prime Capital Investment Advisors LLC now owns 2,789 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock valued at $458,000 after buying an additional 459 shares in the last quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Darden Restaurants in the 4th quarter worth about $17,202,000. Invera Wealth Advisors LLC bought a new position in shares of Darden Restaurants in the 4th quarter worth about $1,038,000. Finally, American Century Companies Inc. boosted its stake in Darden Restaurants by 21.1% during the third quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 197,738 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock worth $28,320,000 after acquiring an additional 34,478 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 93.64% of the company’s stock.

Darden Restaurants Stock Performance

NYSE DRI opened at $149.25 on Monday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.63, a current ratio of 0.39 and a quick ratio of 0.25. Darden Restaurants, Inc. has a 1-year low of $133.36 and a 1-year high of $176.84. The business has a 50 day simple moving average of $163.05 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $159.88. The stock has a market capitalization of $17.81 billion, a PE ratio of 17.50, a P/E/G ratio of 1.64 and a beta of 1.27.

Darden Restaurants (NYSE:DRI) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, March 21st. The restaurant operator reported $2.62 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $2.63 by ($0.01). The firm had revenue of $2.97 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $3.02 billion. Darden Restaurants had a return on equity of 49.94% and a net margin of 9.24%. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 6.8% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned $2.34 earnings per share. On average, research analysts predict that Darden Restaurants, Inc. will post 8.85 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Darden Restaurants Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, May 1st. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, April 10th were given a dividend of $1.31 per share. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, April 9th. This represents a $5.24 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.51%. Darden Restaurants’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 61.43%.

Darden Restaurants announced that its board has authorized a share repurchase program on Thursday, March 21st that authorizes the company to buyback $1.00 billion in shares. This buyback authorization authorizes the restaurant operator to reacquire up to 5% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback programs are usually an indication that the company’s leadership believes its shares are undervalued.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several analysts have commented on DRI shares. Truist Financial reiterated a “buy” rating and set a $190.00 target price on shares of Darden Restaurants in a research note on Friday, March 22nd. Citigroup reduced their price objective on Darden Restaurants from $200.00 to $192.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Friday, March 22nd. BMO Capital Markets boosted their target price on Darden Restaurants from $160.00 to $165.00 and gave the stock a “market perform” rating in a research report on Thursday, March 7th. Stifel Nicolaus raised their price target on shares of Darden Restaurants from $185.00 to $190.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, March 19th. Finally, Oppenheimer decreased their price objective on shares of Darden Restaurants from $186.00 to $182.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company 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 stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Darden Restaurants currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $178.85.

Insider Activity

In related news, insider Melvin John Martin sold 7,673 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, March 27th. The stock was sold at an average price of $165.52, for a total transaction of $1,270,034.96. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now directly owns 17,208 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,848,268.16. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. In related news, insider Melvin John Martin sold 7,673 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, March 27th. The shares were sold at an average price of $165.52, for a total value of $1,270,034.96. Following the transaction, the insider now owns 17,208 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,848,268.16. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Also, SVP Matthew R. Broad sold 4,707 shares of the business’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 sale, the senior vice president now directly owns 19,179 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,994,800.85. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last 90 days, insiders have sold 13,599 shares of company stock valued at $2,197,891. 0.85% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Darden Restaurants Company 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.