Darden Restaurants (NYSE:DRI) Price Target Cut to $227.00 by Analysts at Barclays

Darden Restaurants (NYSE:DRI) had its price target cut by Barclays from $230.00 to $227.00 in a research note published on Wednesday morning,Benzinga reports. They currently have an overweight rating on the restaurant operator’s stock.

DRI has been the subject of a number of other research reports. Wells Fargo & Company lowered their target price on shares of Darden Restaurants from $225.00 to $200.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a report on Friday, September 19th. Guggenheim decreased their price objective on Darden Restaurants from $235.00 to $230.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, December 17th. The Goldman Sachs Group upgraded Darden Restaurants from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $225.00 price objective for the company in a report on Monday, October 20th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft reduced their target price on Darden Restaurants from $239.00 to $220.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, September 19th. Finally, Raymond James Financial restated an “outperform” rating on shares of Darden Restaurants in a research report on Friday, December 19th. Nineteen research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and twelve have assigned a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $224.18.

Darden Restaurants Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE:DRI opened at $199.95 on Wednesday. The business has a fifty day moving average of $181.22 and a 200-day moving average of $195.07. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.03, a quick ratio of 0.26 and a current ratio of 0.39. Darden Restaurants has a twelve month low of $169.00 and a twelve month high of $228.27. The firm has a market cap of $23.02 billion, a PE ratio of 20.96, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.92 and a beta of 0.64.

Darden Restaurants (NYSE:DRI) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, December 18th. The restaurant operator reported $2.08 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.10 by ($0.02). The company had revenue of $3.10 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $3.07 billion. Darden Restaurants had a return on equity of 52.44% and a net margin of 8.92%.The firm’s revenue was up 7.3% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $2.03 EPS. Darden Restaurants has set its FY 2026 guidance at 10.500-10.700 EPS. On average, equities research analysts predict that Darden Restaurants will post 9.52 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Darden Restaurants Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, February 2nd. Investors of record on Friday, January 9th will be paid a $1.50 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, January 9th. This represents a $6.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.0%. Darden Restaurants’s dividend payout ratio is presently 62.89%.

Institutional Trading of Darden Restaurants

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the company. Twin Peaks Wealth Advisors LLC acquired a new position in shares of Darden Restaurants during the second quarter worth about $26,000. Quent Capital LLC bought a new stake in Darden Restaurants in the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $27,000. True Wealth Design LLC lifted its stake in Darden Restaurants by 419.2% in the 2nd quarter. True Wealth Design LLC now owns 135 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock valued at $29,000 after acquiring an additional 109 shares in the last quarter. Elevation Point Wealth Partners LLC acquired a new position in Darden Restaurants during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $29,000. Finally, Ameriflex Group Inc. bought a new position in shares of Darden Restaurants during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $35,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 93.64% of the company’s stock.

About Darden Restaurants

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.