Lindbrook Capital LLC Has $102,000 Stock Position in Darden Restaurants, Inc. (NYSE:DRI)

Lindbrook Capital LLC increased its stake in shares of Darden Restaurants, Inc. (NYSE:DRI) by 39.8% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 622 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock after purchasing an additional 177 shares during the period. Lindbrook Capital LLC’s holdings in Darden Restaurants were worth $102,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Fortitude Family Office LLC acquired a new stake in Darden Restaurants during the 4th quarter worth $29,000. Hartford Financial Management Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Darden Restaurants by 65.1% during the 4th quarter. Hartford Financial Management Inc. now owns 180 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock valued at $30,000 after purchasing an additional 71 shares in the last quarter. Tennessee Valley Asset Management Partners acquired a new position in shares of Darden Restaurants in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $33,000. McGlone Suttner Wealth Management Inc. bought a new stake in Darden Restaurants during the 4th quarter worth approximately $35,000. Finally, Ancora Advisors LLC raised its holdings in Darden Restaurants by 324.2% during the 3rd quarter. Ancora Advisors LLC now owns 280 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock worth $40,000 after buying an additional 214 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 93.64% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities research analysts recently commented on DRI shares. StockNews.com cut shares of Darden Restaurants from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Thursday, January 4th. Barclays raised their price target on shares of Darden Restaurants from $180.00 to $187.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, January 3rd. TD Cowen reissued a “buy” rating and issued a $190.00 price objective on shares of Darden Restaurants in a research report on Monday. Morgan Stanley decreased their target price on shares of Darden Restaurants from $184.00 to $180.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, March 22nd. Finally, Wedbush lowered their price target on shares of Darden Restaurants from $187.00 to $181.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, March 22nd. Five equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and fifteen have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, Darden Restaurants presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $178.85.

Insider Transactions at Darden Restaurants

In other Darden Restaurants news, Director William S. Simon sold 1,219 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Monday, April 8th. The stock was sold at an average price of $158.21, for a total value of $192,857.99. Following the transaction, the director now directly owns 6,281 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $993,717.01. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. In related news, insider Melvin John Martin sold 7,673 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, March 27th. The stock was sold at an average price of $165.52, for a total value of $1,270,034.96. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now directly owns 17,208 shares in the company, valued at $2,848,268.16. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, Director William S. Simon sold 1,219 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Monday, April 8th. The stock was sold at an average price of $158.21, for a total value of $192,857.99. Following the transaction, the director now owns 6,281 shares in the company, valued at approximately $993,717.01. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last quarter, insiders have sold 15,723 shares of company stock worth $2,578,122. Company insiders own 0.85% of the company’s stock.

Darden Restaurants Stock Up 0.5 %

DRI opened at $156.61 on Thursday. The stock’s fifty day simple moving average is $164.79 and its 200 day simple moving average is $159.12. Darden Restaurants, Inc. has a 1-year low of $133.36 and a 1-year high of $176.84. The stock has a market cap of $18.69 billion, a PE ratio of 18.36, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.70 and a beta of 1.25. The company has a current ratio of 0.39, a quick ratio of 0.25 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.63.

Darden Restaurants (NYSE:DRI) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, March 21st. The restaurant operator reported $2.62 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $2.63 by ($0.01). The company had revenue of $2.97 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $3.02 billion. Darden Restaurants had a net margin of 9.24% and a return on equity of 49.94%. Darden Restaurants’s revenue for the quarter was up 6.8% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned $2.34 earnings per share. As a group, research analysts expect that Darden Restaurants, Inc. will post 8.85 earnings per share for the current year.

Darden Restaurants Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, May 1st. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, April 10th will be issued a dividend of $1.31 per share. This represents a $5.24 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.35%. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, April 9th. Darden Restaurants’s dividend payout ratio is presently 61.43%.

Darden Restaurants declared that its Board of Directors has approved a share buyback program on Thursday, March 21st that authorizes the company to repurchase $1.00 billion in outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization authorizes the restaurant operator to buy up to 5% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase programs are usually a sign that the company’s board believes its shares are undervalued.

Darden Restaurants Profile

Darden Restaurants, Inc, together with its subsidiaries, owns and operates full-service restaurants in the United States and Canada. It operates under Olive Garden, LongHorn Steakhouse, Cheddar's Scratch Kitchen, Yard House, The Capital Grille, Seasons 52, Bahama Breeze, Eddie V's Prime Seafood, and Capital Burger brand names.