Evercore ISI Issues Pessimistic Forecast for Darden Restaurants (NYSE:DRI) Stock Price

Darden Restaurants (NYSE:DRI) had its target price decreased by stock analysts at Evercore ISI from $240.00 to $225.00 in a research report issued to clients and investors on Tuesday,Benzinga reports. The brokerage currently has an “outperform” rating on the restaurant operator’s stock. Evercore ISI’s price target would indicate a potential upside of 25.58% from the company’s previous close.

A number of other equities analysts have also weighed in on the stock. Truist Financial lowered their price objective on shares of Darden Restaurants from $252.00 to $240.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, September 19th. Mizuho reduced their target price on shares of Darden Restaurants from $190.00 to $185.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research note on Monday, November 24th. Bank of America lifted their target price on shares of Darden Restaurants from $253.00 to $254.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, September 16th. The Goldman Sachs Group raised shares of Darden Restaurants from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $225.00 price target for the company in a report on Monday, October 20th. Finally, TD Cowen reaffirmed a “hold” rating and issued a $235.00 price objective on shares of Darden Restaurants in a report on Thursday, September 18th. Nineteen investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and eleven have given a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Darden Restaurants presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $224.36.

Darden Restaurants Price Performance

Shares of DRI opened at $179.18 on Tuesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.96, a quick ratio of 0.27 and a current ratio of 0.40. Darden Restaurants has a fifty-two week low of $159.67 and a fifty-two week high of $228.27. The firm has a 50-day simple moving average of $180.62 and a 200-day simple moving average of $199.10. The company has a market capitalization of $20.84 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 19.20, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.71 and a beta of 0.66.

Darden Restaurants (NYSE:DRI) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, September 18th. The restaurant operator reported $1.97 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $2.01 by ($0.04). Darden Restaurants had a net margin of 8.90% and a return on equity of 52.35%. The company had revenue of $3.04 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $3.03 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $1.75 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue was up 10.4% on a year-over-year basis. Darden Restaurants has set its FY 2026 guidance at 10.500-10.700 EPS. On average, equities research analysts anticipate that Darden Restaurants will post 9.52 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Transactions at Darden Restaurants

In other news, SVP Matthew R. Broad sold 5,661 shares of Darden Restaurants stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, October 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $193.40, for a total transaction of $1,094,837.40. Following the completion of the sale, the senior vice president directly owned 13,916 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,691,354.40. This trade represents a 28.92% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Company insiders own 0.49% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Darden Restaurants

Several hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the company. Capital World Investors boosted its position in Darden Restaurants by 1.6% during the third quarter. Capital World Investors now owns 14,839,198 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock worth $2,824,996,000 after purchasing an additional 236,620 shares in the last quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. raised its stake in shares of Darden Restaurants by 2.1% during the 2nd quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 14,055,185 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock worth $3,063,609,000 after buying an additional 284,814 shares during the last quarter. State Street Corp boosted its position in shares of Darden Restaurants by 2.1% in the 2nd quarter. State Street Corp now owns 4,916,944 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock worth $1,071,746,000 after buying an additional 100,270 shares in the last quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP grew its stake in Darden Restaurants by 32.8% in the 3rd quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 4,463,786 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock valued at $849,726,000 after acquiring an additional 1,102,211 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. grew its stake in Darden Restaurants by 1.9% in the 2nd quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 4,073,901 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock valued at $887,988,000 after acquiring an additional 75,701 shares during the last quarter. 93.64% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

About Darden Restaurants

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.