Darden Restaurants (NYSE:DRI) Receives “Equal Weight” Rating from Stephens

Stephens reissued their equal weight rating on shares of Darden Restaurants (NYSE:DRI) in a research note published on Friday morning,Benzinga reports. Stephens currently has a $205.00 price target on the restaurant operator’s stock.

A number of other equities research analysts have also commented on the company. BMO Capital Markets restated a “market perform” rating and set a $205.00 price target on shares of Darden Restaurants in a research report on Friday. Truist Financial decreased their target price on Darden Restaurants from $252.00 to $240.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, September 19th. KeyCorp lowered their target price on Darden Restaurants from $240.00 to $225.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, September 19th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reduced their price target on shares of Darden Restaurants from $240.00 to $230.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, October 6th. Finally, Morgan Stanley decreased their price objective on shares of Darden Restaurants from $238.00 to $236.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, December 12th. Nineteen research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and twelve have issued a Hold rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Darden Restaurants currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $223.39.

Darden Restaurants Stock Down 1.5%

DRI opened at $189.91 on Friday. The firm has a market cap of $22.09 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 19.91, a PEG ratio of 1.87 and a beta of 0.66. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.03, a quick ratio of 0.27 and a current ratio of 0.39. The firm’s 50-day simple moving average is $180.27 and its 200-day simple moving average is $197.95. Darden Restaurants has a twelve month low of $169.00 and a twelve month high of $228.27.

Darden Restaurants (NYSE:DRI) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, December 18th. The restaurant operator reported $2.08 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.09 by ($0.01). The firm had revenue of $3.10 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.07 billion. Darden Restaurants had a net margin of 8.92% and a return on equity of 52.44%. Darden Restaurants’s quarterly revenue was up 7.3% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $2.03 earnings per share. Darden Restaurants has set its FY 2026 guidance at 10.500-10.700 EPS. Equities research analysts anticipate that Darden Restaurants will post 9.52 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Darden Restaurants Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, February 2nd. Shareholders of record on Friday, January 9th will be issued a dividend of $1.50 per share. This represents a $6.00 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.2%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, January 9th. Darden Restaurants’s payout ratio is currently 64.31%.

Insider Activity

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 owned 13,916 shares in the company, valued at $2,691,354.40. The trade was a 28.92% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Company insiders own 0.49% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Darden Restaurants

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the business. Twin Peaks Wealth Advisors LLC bought a new stake in shares of Darden Restaurants during the 2nd quarter valued at $26,000. Elevation Point Wealth Partners LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Darden Restaurants during the second quarter worth $29,000. True Wealth Design LLC increased its holdings in Darden Restaurants by 419.2% in the second quarter. True Wealth Design LLC now owns 135 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock valued at $29,000 after purchasing an additional 109 shares during the last quarter. Quent Capital LLC bought a new stake in Darden Restaurants in the third quarter valued at about $27,000. Finally, Ameriflex Group Inc. acquired a new position in Darden Restaurants in the third quarter valued at about $35,000. 93.64% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

More Darden Restaurants News

Here are the key news stories impacting Darden Restaurants this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Raised revenue outlook and solid top‑line — Darden reported revenue of $3.10B (+7.3% y/y) and strong comps at Olive Garden and LongHorn, and raised its full‑year sales outlook, a clear positive for growth expectations. PR Newswire: Q2 results & outlook
• Positive Sentiment: Strong analyst buy support — Multiple firms reiterated buy ratings and bullish price targets (Bank of America kept a Buy with a $261 target; BTIG reaffirmed Buy at $225; Stifel maintained bullish stance), supporting upside sentiment. TipRanks: BofA reiterates Buy
• Positive Sentiment: Dividend and cash returns remain attractive — Darden declared a $1.50 quarterly dividend (roughly a 3% yield), which supports income investors and signals confidence in cash flow. Seeking Alpha: Dividend declared
• Neutral Sentiment: FY26 EPS guidance roughly in line — Darden set FY2026 EPS guidance at $10.50–$10.70, close to consensus, which reduces uncertainty but doesn’t materially change the valuation picture. MarketBeat: Guidance and call
• Neutral Sentiment: Mixed analyst views on valuation — Some firms reiterate Hold/Equal‑Weight ratings citing full valuation despite solid execution, suggesting limited near‑term upside for investors who focus on valuation. TickerReport: Stephens equal weight
• Negative Sentiment: Slight EPS miss pressured the stock — Reported EPS was $2.08 vs. the $2.09 consensus (a $0.01 miss), which, despite being tiny, triggered downside given elevated expectations and the stock’s recent run. Benzinga: What’s going on with DRI stock?
• Negative Sentiment: Margin pressure from commodity costs — Beef and other commodity inflation compressed margins (especially at LongHorn); management expects easing but cost pressure remains a near‑term risk to profitability. Seeking Alpha: Margin pressure analysis
• Negative Sentiment: Unusual put buying and insider selling — Elevated put option activity and notable insider share sales were reported, which can add short‑term downside pressure or signal caution among some market participants. QuiverQuant: Options & insider activity

Darden Restaurants Company Profile

Darden Restaurants, Inc is a multi-brand, full-service restaurant company headquartered in Orlando, Florida. The company owns and operates a portfolio of casual and fine-dining concepts that together serve millions of guests through company-owned and franchised locations. Its well-known brands include Olive Garden and LongHorn Steakhouse, alongside other dining concepts that span Italian, American, steakhouse and upscale casual formats.

Darden’s restaurants provide a range of guest-facing services including dine-in, takeout, delivery and catering, and feature menus tailored to each brand’s positioning—Italian-American fare at Olive Garden, steaks and grilled items at LongHorn, and more premium steakhouse and chef-driven offerings at its upscale concepts.