Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft Lowers Darden Restaurants (NYSE:DRI) Price Target to $220.00

Darden Restaurants (NYSE:DRI) had its target price decreased by equities research analysts at Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft from $239.00 to $220.00 in a research note issued on Friday,Benzinga reports. The firm presently has a “buy” rating on the restaurant operator’s stock. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft’s price objective would indicate a potential upside of 19.03% from the company’s previous close.

A number of other research firms also recently issued reports on DRI. Morgan Stanley lifted their target price on Darden Restaurants from $235.00 to $238.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday. UBS Group lifted their target price on Darden Restaurants from $225.00 to $245.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, June 16th. Robert W. Baird lowered their target price on Darden Restaurants from $230.00 to $208.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday. BMO Capital Markets lowered their target price on Darden Restaurants from $215.00 to $205.00 and set a “market perform” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday. Finally, Citigroup lifted their target price on Darden Restaurants from $245.00 to $253.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, June 23rd. Eighteen analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and ten have issued a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $225.96.

Darden Restaurants Stock Down 4.1%

NYSE:DRI opened at $184.83 on Friday. Darden Restaurants has a 12-month low of $155.18 and a 12-month high of $228.27. The company has a quick ratio of 0.28, a current ratio of 0.40 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.96. The firm has a market capitalization of $21.55 billion, a P/E ratio of 19.81, a P/E/G ratio of 1.69 and a beta of 0.71. The stock’s fifty day simple moving average is $206.37 and its 200-day simple moving average is $206.14.

Darden Restaurants (NYSE:DRI) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, September 18th. The restaurant operator reported $1.97 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $2.01 by ($0.04). Darden Restaurants had a return on equity of 52.35% and a net margin of 8.90%.The company had revenue of $3.04 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $3.03 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned $1.75 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 10.4% on a year-over-year basis. Darden Restaurants has set its FY 2026 guidance at 10.500-10.700 EPS. Equities research analysts expect that Darden Restaurants will post 9.52 earnings per share for the current year.

Darden Restaurants declared that its board has approved a stock buyback program on Friday, June 20th that permits the company to buyback $1.00 billion in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization permits the restaurant operator to reacquire up to 3.8% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback programs are often an indication that the company’s leadership believes its shares are undervalued.

Insider Activity

In other Darden Restaurants news, insider Todd Burrowes sold 13,569 shares of Darden Restaurants stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, June 30th. The shares were sold at an average price of $216.45, for a total transaction of $2,937,010.05. Following the transaction, the insider owned 46,327 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $10,027,479.15. This trade represents a 22.65% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, SVP Susan M. Connelly sold 4,735 shares of Darden Restaurants stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, June 24th. The stock was sold at an average price of $223.78, for a total transaction of $1,059,598.30. Following the transaction, the senior vice president directly owned 4,602 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,029,835.56. This represents a 50.71% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last 90 days, insiders have sold 45,727 shares of company stock worth $10,022,232. Corporate insiders own 0.49% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Darden Restaurants

Several large investors have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Bowman & Co S.C. lifted its holdings in shares of Darden Restaurants by 0.5% during the 2nd quarter. Bowman & Co S.C. now owns 9,631 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock worth $2,099,000 after acquiring an additional 48 shares during the last quarter. Rise Advisors LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Darden Restaurants by 32.2% during the 1st quarter. Rise Advisors LLC now owns 201 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock worth $42,000 after acquiring an additional 49 shares during the last quarter. Ballentine Partners LLC lifted its stake in Darden Restaurants by 2.5% in the second quarter. Ballentine Partners LLC now owns 1,975 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock worth $430,000 after purchasing an additional 49 shares during the last quarter. GAM Holding AG lifted its stake in Darden Restaurants by 0.7% in the second quarter. GAM Holding AG now owns 6,975 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock worth $1,520,000 after purchasing an additional 51 shares during the last quarter. Finally, SBI Securities Co. Ltd. lifted its stake in Darden Restaurants by 15.8% in the first quarter. SBI Securities Co. Ltd. now owns 381 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock worth $79,000 after purchasing an additional 52 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 93.64% of the company’s stock.

Darden Restaurants Company 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.