Darden Restaurants, Inc. $DRI Shares Acquired by Federated Hermes Inc.

Federated Hermes Inc. increased its holdings in shares of Darden Restaurants, Inc. (NYSE:DRI) by 70.9% during the 3rd quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The fund owned 34,816 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock after buying an additional 14,447 shares during the period. Federated Hermes Inc.’s holdings in Darden Restaurants were worth $6,628,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Several other large investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in DRI. GAM Holding AG grew its holdings in Darden Restaurants by 0.7% in the 2nd quarter. GAM Holding AG now owns 6,975 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock worth $1,520,000 after buying an additional 51 shares in the last quarter. MAI Capital Management boosted its position in shares of Darden Restaurants by 0.7% during the 2nd quarter. MAI Capital Management now owns 7,177 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock valued at $1,564,000 after purchasing an additional 52 shares in the last quarter. Avidian Wealth Enterprises LLC boosted its holdings in Darden Restaurants by 3.6% during the second quarter. Avidian Wealth Enterprises LLC now owns 1,540 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock worth $336,000 after buying an additional 54 shares in the last quarter. Concurrent Investment Advisors LLC boosted its stake in shares of Darden Restaurants by 1.7% during the 3rd quarter. Concurrent Investment Advisors LLC now owns 3,285 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock worth $625,000 after acquiring an additional 55 shares in the last quarter. Finally, apricus wealth LLC boosted its position in shares of Darden Restaurants by 5.2% in the 3rd quarter. apricus wealth LLC now owns 1,141 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock valued at $217,000 after purchasing an additional 56 shares during the period. 93.64% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Darden Restaurants Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:DRI opened at $200.89 on Tuesday. The business has a 50-day moving average of $191.98 and a two-hundred day moving average of $193.60. Darden Restaurants, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $169.00 and a fifty-two week high of $228.27. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.03, a current ratio of 0.39 and a quick ratio of 0.26. The stock has a market capitalization of $23.13 billion, a P/E ratio of 21.06, a P/E/G ratio of 1.91 and a beta of 0.64.

Darden Restaurants (NYSE:DRI) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, December 18th. The restaurant operator reported $2.08 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.10 by ($0.02). The firm had revenue of $3.10 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $3.07 billion. Darden Restaurants had a net margin of 8.92% and a return on equity of 52.44%. The firm’s revenue was up 7.3% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $2.03 earnings per share. Darden Restaurants has set its FY 2026 guidance at 10.500-10.700 EPS. On average, equities research analysts predict that Darden Restaurants, Inc. will post 9.52 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Darden Restaurants Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, February 2nd. Investors of record on Friday, January 9th were paid a dividend of $1.50 per share. This represents a $6.00 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.0%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, January 9th. Darden Restaurants’s payout ratio is currently 62.89%.

Insider Transactions at Darden Restaurants

In other Darden Restaurants news, CFO Rajesh Vennam sold 6,774 shares of the stock in a transaction on Thursday, January 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $214.12, for a total transaction of $1,450,448.88. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer directly owned 9,040 shares in the company, valued at $1,935,644.80. This represents a 42.84% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, SVP Susan M. Connelly sold 2,635 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, January 14th. The stock was sold at an average price of $207.36, for a total transaction of $546,393.60. Following the sale, the senior vice president directly owned 4,098 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $849,761.28. The trade was a 39.14% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Over the last three months, insiders have sold 18,770 shares of company stock valued at $3,948,970. Company insiders own 0.49% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

DRI has been the subject of a number of recent analyst reports. TD Cowen reaffirmed a “hold” rating on shares of Darden Restaurants in a research note on Friday, December 19th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. decreased their target price on Darden Restaurants from $240.00 to $230.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report on Monday, October 6th. Guggenheim lowered their price target on Darden Restaurants from $235.00 to $230.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, December 17th. Stephens reissued an “equal weight” rating and set a $205.00 price target on shares of Darden Restaurants in a research report on Friday, December 19th. Finally, Melius Research upgraded Darden Restaurants from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, January 23rd. Twenty investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and nine have issued a Hold rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Darden Restaurants presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $224.78.

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.