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

Darden Restaurants, Inc. (NYSE:DRI) has been assigned a consensus recommendation of “Moderate Buy” from the twenty-seven analysts that are presently covering the company, Marketbeat reports. Nine equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eighteen have given a buy rating to the company. The average 1-year price objective among brokers that have covered the stock in the last year is $226.24.

Several brokerages have issued reports on DRI. Mizuho raised Darden Restaurants from a “neutral” rating to an “outperform” rating and boosted their price target for the company from $195.00 to $235.00 in a research note on Friday, January 23rd. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft raised their price objective on shares of Darden Restaurants from $222.00 to $230.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, March 20th. Evercore reiterated an “outperform” rating on shares of Darden Restaurants in a research note on Friday, December 19th. Stephens boosted their target price on shares of Darden Restaurants from $205.00 to $210.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Friday, March 20th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company increased their target price on shares of Darden Restaurants from $200.00 to $210.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Friday, March 20th.

Insider Activity at Darden Restaurants

In related news, insider John W. Wilkerson sold 2,258 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, January 16th. The stock was sold at an average price of $213.00, for a total transaction of $480,954.00. Following the transaction, the insider directly owned 17,784 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $3,787,992. This represents a 11.27% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, SVP Susan M. Connelly sold 2,635 shares of the company’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 value of $546,393.60. Following the transaction, the senior vice president directly owned 4,098 shares in the company, valued at approximately $849,761.28. This trade represents a 39.14% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Insiders sold 18,770 shares of company stock worth $3,948,970 over the last quarter. Company insiders own 0.49% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Darden Restaurants

Hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. J. Derek Lewis & Associates Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Darden Restaurants during the fourth quarter worth approximately $341,000. Hsbc Holdings PLC grew its position in 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 period. World Investment Advisors grew its position in 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 during the period. Winthrop Partners WNY LLC bought a new stake in Darden Restaurants during the 4th quarter valued at $1,795,000. Finally, Union Savings Bank bought a new stake in Darden Restaurants during the 4th quarter valued at $28,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 93.64% of the company’s stock.

Darden Restaurants Stock Performance

Shares of Darden Restaurants stock opened at $198.66 on Friday. The stock has a market cap of $22.87 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 21.02, a P/E/G ratio of 1.91 and a beta of 0.61. Darden Restaurants has a twelve month low of $169.00 and a twelve month high of $228.27. The company’s fifty day moving average is $207.26 and its 200 day moving average is $194.38. The company has a quick ratio of 0.26, a current ratio of 0.39 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.02.

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

Darden Restaurants Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, May 1st. Stockholders of record on Friday, April 10th will be issued a dividend of $1.50 per share. The ex-dividend date is Friday, April 10th. This represents a $6.00 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.0%. Darden Restaurants’s dividend payout ratio is currently 63.49%.

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.