Darden Restaurants’ (DRI) “Buy” Rating Reiterated at BTIG Research

BTIG Research reissued their buy rating on shares of Darden Restaurants (NYSE:DRI) in a research note released on Friday,Benzinga reports. The brokerage currently has a $225.00 price objective on the restaurant operator’s stock.

Other equities analysts have also issued research reports about the company. BMO Capital Markets upped their price target on Darden Restaurants from $205.00 to $220.00 and gave the company a “market perform” rating in a research note on Tuesday, January 6th. Jefferies Financial Group lowered their price objective on Darden Restaurants from $210.00 to $200.00 and set a “hold” rating for the company in a research report on Monday, December 15th. TD Cowen reissued a “hold” rating on shares of Darden Restaurants in a report on Friday, December 19th. Citigroup upped their target price on shares of Darden Restaurants from $234.00 to $235.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, March 5th. Finally, Robert W. Baird raised their target price on shares of Darden Restaurants from $208.00 to $215.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Friday. Eighteen research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and nine have issued a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Darden Restaurants currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $226.24.

Darden Restaurants Stock Performance

DRI stock opened at $202.99 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.02, a current ratio of 0.39 and a quick ratio of 0.26. The company has a 50 day moving average price of $208.09 and a 200 day moving average price of $194.47. Darden Restaurants has a fifty-two week low of $169.00 and a fifty-two week high of $228.27. The stock has a market capitalization of $23.37 billion, a PE ratio of 21.48, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.97 and a beta of 0.61.

Darden Restaurants (NYSE:DRI) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, March 19th. The restaurant operator reported $2.95 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.94 by $0.01. The firm had revenue of $3.35 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $3.33 billion. Darden Restaurants had a return on equity of 53.54% and a net margin of 8.66%.The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 5.9% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned $2.80 EPS. Analysts forecast that Darden Restaurants will post 9.52 EPS for the current year.

Darden Restaurants Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, May 1st. Shareholders of record on Friday, April 10th will be paid a $1.50 dividend. This represents a $6.00 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.0%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, April 10th. Darden Restaurants’s dividend payout ratio is presently 63.49%.

Insider Activity

In related news, CFO Rajesh Vennam sold 6,774 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, January 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $214.12, for a total value of $1,450,448.88. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer owned 9,040 shares in the company, valued at $1,935,644.80. This represents a 42.84% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Also, SVP Susan M. Connelly sold 2,635 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, January 14th. The stock was sold at an average price of $207.36, for a total value of $546,393.60. Following the sale, the senior vice president directly owned 4,098 shares in the company, valued at $849,761.28. The trade was a 39.14% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. In the last ninety days, insiders have sold 18,770 shares of company stock valued at $3,948,970. 0.49% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in DRI. Wellington Management Group LLP raised its position in shares of Darden Restaurants by 81.0% during the fourth quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 8,077,567 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock worth $1,486,434,000 after purchasing an additional 3,613,781 shares during the period. JPMorgan Chase & Co. grew its position in shares of Darden Restaurants by 78.4% in the 3rd quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 2,666,919 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock valued at $507,675,000 after purchasing an additional 1,171,890 shares during the period. Norges Bank bought a new stake in Darden Restaurants during the 4th quarter worth approximately $144,483,000. Marshall Wace LLP increased its stake in Darden Restaurants by 820.4% during the 2nd quarter. Marshall Wace LLP now owns 706,416 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock worth $153,977,000 after purchasing an additional 629,669 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Alyeska Investment Group L.P. acquired a new stake in Darden Restaurants during the 4th quarter worth approximately $113,301,000. 93.64% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Key Darden Restaurants News

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

• Positive Sentiment: Q3 results and guidance lift — Darden reported $2.95 EPS (in line/just above consensus), revenue of $3.35B (+5.9% YoY) and raised its full‑year outlook for sales and adjusted EPS, citing strength at LongHorn and unit growth. Management’s guidance lift is the primary catalyst for optimism. PR Newswire: Q3 Results & Outlook
• Positive Sentiment: Analysts lift targets and ratings — A wave of firms raised targets (Citigroup to $238, Deutsche Bank to $230, Barclays to $232, KeyCorp, BTIG, others), with several reaffirming Buy/Overweight ratings. That collective upward revision signals stronger Street momentum behind the stock. Benzinga: Analysts Increase Forecasts
• Positive Sentiment: Dividend declared & capital returns — Darden announced a quarterly dividend (covers April record / May pay date) and continues significant buybacks; MarketBeat highlights strong cash flow and share‑count reduction as supportive of future returns. That makes the stock more attractive to income and valuation‑focused investors. MarketBeat: Growth & Cash Flow
• Neutral Sentiment: Earnings call / transcripts available — Management held the Q3 call and released transcripts/slides (useful for digging into LFLs, unit‑economics, weather impacts and cadence of buybacks). Investors should review the call for color on margins and FY26 assumptions. MSN: Q3 Earnings Call Transcript
• Negative Sentiment: One‑time charges and brand exit — Darden took impairments and other one‑offs tied to the Bahama Breeze review and planned closures/conversions; GAAP results look weaker as a result. These items compress near‑term margins and add uncertainty around restructuring costs. MarketBeat: One‑offs & Impairments
• Negative Sentiment: Risks flagged by some commentary — A few writeups note building risks (weather, commodity/labor pressure, and noise from restructuring) that could press margins even as revenue growth remains healthy. Seeking Alpha: Risks Building

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.