Darden Restaurants, Inc. (NYSE:DRI) Given Average Recommendation of “Moderate Buy” by Analysts

Shares of Darden Restaurants, Inc. (NYSE:DRI) have been assigned a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” from the twenty-nine ratings firms that are covering the company, MarketBeat.com reports. Nine equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and twenty have assigned a buy rating to the company. The average 1-year price target among analysts that have updated their coverage on the stock in the last year is $224.7778.

DRI has been the topic of several research analyst reports. Stephens reissued an “equal weight” rating and set a $205.00 target price on shares of Darden Restaurants in a research note on Friday, December 19th. Sanford C. Bernstein reissued an “outperform” rating on shares of Darden Restaurants in a report on Friday, December 19th. Morgan Stanley cut their target price on Darden Restaurants from $238.00 to $236.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, December 12th. UBS Group reiterated a “buy” rating on shares of Darden Restaurants in a research report on Friday, December 19th. Finally, Guggenheim cut their price objective on Darden Restaurants from $235.00 to $230.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, December 17th.

Darden Restaurants Trading Up 3.3%

Shares of DRI stock opened at $212.28 on Thursday. Darden Restaurants has a 1 year low of $169.00 and a 1 year high of $228.27. The firm has a market capitalization of $24.44 billion, a PE ratio of 22.25, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.97 and a beta of 0.64. The stock has a fifty day moving average of $193.14 and a two-hundred day moving average of $193.71. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.03, a quick ratio of 0.26 and a current ratio of 0.39.

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

Darden Restaurants Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, February 2nd. Shareholders of record on Friday, January 9th were given a $1.50 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Friday, January 9th. This represents a $6.00 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.8%. Darden Restaurants’s payout ratio is 62.89%.

Trending Headlines about Darden Restaurants

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

• Positive Sentiment: Exiting Bahama Breeze lets Darden redeploy capital and management attention to higher-return, core concepts (Olive Garden, LongHorn, etc.), which can improve long-term margins and return on invested capital. Read More.
• Positive Sentiment: Market reaction suggests investors view the portfolio simplification favorably — the stock is trading up after the announcement as the move is seen as strategic focus rather than a long-term business weakness. Read More.
• Neutral Sentiment: Corporate update: Darden said it has “completed exploration of strategic alternatives” for Bahama Breeze and will proceed with the chosen path; the company framed this as a strategic decision rather than a divestiture sale. Read More.
• Neutral Sentiment: Coverage varies on the scale of closures — some outlets report the chain will be largely shut down, others report roughly half the sites will close; details and timing remain being clarified by Darden. Read More. Read More.
• Negative Sentiment: Near-term financial pain likely: closures typically trigger impairment charges, lease termination costs, severance and one-time restructuring expenses that can reduce near-term earnings and cash flow. Investors should expect any related charges to show up in upcoming filings/earnings commentary. Read More.
• Negative Sentiment: Operational and reputational risks — site-level closures mean job losses, local disruptions and potential lease or environmental liabilities; these can widen closure costs if exit terms are unfavorable. Read More.

Insider Buying and Selling at Darden Restaurants

In other news, insider John W. Wilkerson sold 2,258 shares of Darden Restaurants stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, January 16th. The shares were sold at an average price of $213.00, for a total value of $480,954.00. Following the transaction, the insider owned 17,784 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $3,787,992. The trade was a 11.27% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, insider Todd Burrowes sold 7,103 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, January 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $207.12, for a total transaction of $1,471,173.36. Following the completion of the sale, the insider owned 44,252 shares in the company, valued at $9,165,474.24. The trade was a 13.83% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. In the last quarter, insiders have sold 18,770 shares of company stock worth $3,948,970. Company insiders own 0.49% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Darden Restaurants

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Twin Peaks Wealth Advisors LLC acquired a new position in shares of Darden Restaurants in the 2nd quarter worth $26,000. Torren Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of Darden Restaurants in the 4th quarter valued at $26,000. Quent Capital LLC purchased a new position in Darden Restaurants in the 3rd quarter worth about $27,000. Thurston Springer Miller Herd & Titak Inc. raised its holdings in Darden Restaurants by 926.7% during the 4th quarter. Thurston Springer Miller Herd & Titak Inc. now owns 154 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock worth $28,000 after buying an additional 139 shares during the period. Finally, True Wealth Design LLC lifted its stake in Darden Restaurants by 419.2% during the second quarter. True Wealth Design LLC now owns 135 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock valued at $29,000 after buying an additional 109 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 93.64% of the company’s stock.

About Darden Restaurants

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.