Raymond James Financial Lowers Darden Restaurants (NYSE:DRI) Price Target to $210.00

Darden Restaurants (NYSE:DRI) had its price target cut by equities researchers at Raymond James Financial from $230.00 to $210.00 in a research report issued on Friday,Benzinga reports. The firm presently has an “outperform” rating on the restaurant operator’s stock. Raymond James Financial’s target price points to a potential upside of 13.62% from the stock’s current price.

A number of other research analysts have also recently commented on the company. Morgan Stanley boosted their price target on Darden Restaurants from $215.00 to $235.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Wednesday, June 18th. Bank of America boosted their price target on Darden Restaurants from $253.00 to $254.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, September 16th. Melius assumed coverage on Darden Restaurants in a report on Monday, July 14th. They issued a “hold” rating and a $240.00 price target on the stock. Oppenheimer boosted their price target on Darden Restaurants from $230.00 to $250.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Wednesday, June 18th. Finally, BTIG Research lowered their price target on Darden Restaurants from $235.00 to $225.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Friday. Eighteen analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and ten have assigned a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $225.96.

Darden Restaurants Trading Down 4.1%

Shares of NYSE:DRI opened at $184.83 on Friday. The stock has a 50 day moving average of $206.37 and a 200 day moving average of $206.14. The company has a market cap of $21.55 billion, a PE ratio of 19.81, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.69 and a beta of 0.71. The company has a current ratio of 0.40, a quick ratio of 0.28 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.96. Darden Restaurants has a 12-month low of $155.18 and a 12-month high of $228.27.

Darden Restaurants (NYSE:DRI) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, September 18th. The restaurant operator reported $1.97 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.01 by ($0.04). Darden Restaurants had a return on equity of 52.35% and a net margin of 8.90%.The business had revenue of $3.04 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $3.03 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $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. As a group, equities research analysts expect that Darden Restaurants will post 9.52 EPS for the current year.

Darden Restaurants declared that its Board of Directors has approved a stock buyback plan on Friday, June 20th that allows the company to repurchase $1.00 billion in outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization allows the restaurant operator to buy up to 3.8% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares repurchase plans are often a sign that the company’s leadership believes its stock is undervalued.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Darden Restaurants news, CFO Rajesh Vennam sold 5,780 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, June 24th. The stock was sold at an average price of $222.22, for a total value of $1,284,431.60. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer owned 4,555 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,012,212.10. This represents a 55.93% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, SVP Matthew R. Broad sold 6,949 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Monday, June 30th. The shares were sold at an average price of $218.00, for a total value of $1,514,882.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president directly owned 14,367 shares in the company, valued at $3,132,006. This trade represents a 32.60% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 45,727 shares of company stock worth $10,022,232 over the last ninety days. Corporate insiders own 0.49% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Darden Restaurants

Hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the business. Twin Peaks Wealth Advisors LLC purchased a new position in shares of Darden Restaurants during the second quarter valued at $26,000. Grove Bank & Trust increased its stake in shares of Darden Restaurants by 171.4% during the first quarter. Grove Bank & Trust now owns 133 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock valued at $28,000 after buying an additional 84 shares during the period. True Wealth Design LLC increased its stake in shares of Darden Restaurants by 419.2% during the second quarter. True Wealth Design LLC now owns 135 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock valued at $29,000 after buying an additional 109 shares during the period. Elevation Point Wealth Partners LLC purchased a new position in shares of Darden Restaurants during the second quarter valued at $29,000. Finally, ORG Partners LLC increased its stake in shares of Darden Restaurants by 108.8% during the first quarter. ORG Partners LLC now owns 142 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock valued at $30,000 after buying an additional 74 shares during the period. 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.