Darden Restaurants (NYSE:DRI) Price Target Raised to $210.00

Darden Restaurants (NYSE:DRI) had its price objective upped by Stephens from $205.00 to $210.00 in a report published on Friday morning,Benzinga reports. They currently have an equal weight rating on the restaurant operator’s stock.

A number of other equities research analysts have also recently weighed in on the company. Morgan Stanley dropped their price objective on Darden Restaurants from $238.00 to $236.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, December 12th. Mizuho raised Darden Restaurants from a “neutral” rating to an “outperform” rating and increased their target price for the stock from $195.00 to $235.00 in a research note on Friday, January 23rd. BTIG Research restated a “buy” rating and set a $225.00 target price on shares of Darden Restaurants in a report on Friday. Truist Financial reaffirmed a “hold” rating and issued a $207.00 target price (down from $240.00) on shares of Darden Restaurants in a research report on Thursday, January 8th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group cut their price target on shares of Darden Restaurants from $210.00 to $200.00 and set a “hold” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, December 15th. Eighteen analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and nine have given a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Darden Restaurants currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $226.24.

Darden Restaurants Stock Performance

Shares of DRI stock opened at $202.99 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.02, a quick ratio of 0.26 and a current ratio of 0.39. The firm has a market cap of $23.37 billion, a P/E ratio of 21.48, a P/E/G ratio of 1.97 and a beta of 0.61. The firm’s 50 day moving average price is $208.09 and its 200-day moving average price is $194.47. Darden Restaurants has a one year low of $169.00 and a one year high of $228.27.

Darden Restaurants (NYSE:DRI) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, March 19th. The restaurant operator reported $2.95 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.94 by $0.01. The firm had revenue of $3.35 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $3.33 billion. Darden Restaurants had a net margin of 8.66% and a return on equity of 53.54%. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 5.9% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $2.80 EPS. As a group, equities research analysts predict that Darden Restaurants will post 9.52 EPS for the current year.

Darden Restaurants Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, May 1st. Investors of record on Friday, April 10th will be issued a $1.50 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Friday, April 10th. This represents a $6.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.0%. Darden Restaurants’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 63.49%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Darden Restaurants news, insider Todd Burrowes sold 7,103 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated 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 sale, the insider owned 44,252 shares in the company, valued at $9,165,474.24. This represents a 13.83% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Also, CFO Rajesh Vennam sold 6,774 shares of the stock in a transaction dated 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 directly owned 9,040 shares in the company, valued at $1,935,644.80. This represents a 42.84% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Over the last 90 days, insiders sold 18,770 shares of company stock valued at $3,948,970. Company insiders own 0.49% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Hsbc Holdings PLC increased its position in shares of Darden Restaurants by 3.4% in the 4th quarter. Hsbc Holdings PLC now owns 424,673 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock valued at $78,274,000 after purchasing an additional 14,156 shares during the last quarter. World Investment Advisors raised its holdings in shares of Darden Restaurants by 5.6% in the 4th quarter. World Investment Advisors now owns 45,020 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock valued at $8,285,000 after purchasing an additional 2,385 shares in the last quarter. Winthrop Partners WNY LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Darden Restaurants during the 4th quarter worth $1,795,000. Union Savings Bank purchased a new stake in shares of Darden Restaurants during the 4th quarter worth $28,000. Finally, Bayban acquired a new position in shares of Darden Restaurants during the fourth quarter worth $128,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 93.64% of the company’s stock.

Key Stories Impacting Darden Restaurants

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

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.