AEGON ASSET MANAGEMENT UK Plc Purchases 7,187 Shares of Darden Restaurants, Inc. $DRI

AEGON ASSET MANAGEMENT UK Plc lifted its position in shares of Darden Restaurants, Inc. (NYSE:DRI) by 2.5% during the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 295,379 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock after purchasing an additional 7,187 shares during the quarter. AEGON ASSET MANAGEMENT UK Plc owned about 0.25% of Darden Restaurants worth $56,381,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Ballentine Partners LLC boosted its holdings 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 acquiring an additional 49 shares in the last quarter. GAM Holding AG increased its holdings in shares of Darden Restaurants by 0.7% during the second quarter. GAM Holding AG now owns 6,975 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock valued at $1,520,000 after acquiring an additional 51 shares in the last quarter. MAI Capital Management raised its position in shares of Darden Restaurants by 0.7% in the 2nd quarter. MAI Capital Management now owns 7,177 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock worth $1,564,000 after purchasing an additional 52 shares during the last quarter. Avidian Wealth Enterprises LLC raised its position in shares of Darden Restaurants by 3.6% in the 2nd quarter. Avidian Wealth Enterprises LLC now owns 1,540 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock worth $336,000 after purchasing an additional 54 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Concurrent Investment Advisors LLC boosted its stake in Darden Restaurants by 1.7% in the 3rd quarter. Concurrent Investment Advisors LLC now owns 3,285 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock worth $625,000 after purchasing an additional 55 shares in the last quarter. 93.64% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research analysts have recently issued reports on the company. Evercore ISI reaffirmed an “outperform” rating on shares of Darden Restaurants in a report on Friday, December 19th. TD Cowen restated a “hold” rating on shares of Darden Restaurants in a research note on Friday, December 19th. Melius Research raised shares of Darden Restaurants from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Friday. KeyCorp reiterated an “overweight” rating on shares of Darden Restaurants in a research note on Friday, December 19th. Finally, Morgan Stanley lowered their price objective on shares of Darden Restaurants from $238.00 to $236.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, December 12th. Twenty analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and nine have issued a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Darden Restaurants presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $224.78.

Darden Restaurants News Roundup

Here are the key news stories impacting Darden Restaurants this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Mizuho upgraded DRI from Neutral to Outperform and raised its price target to $235 (from $195), citing Olive Garden strength and implying meaningful upside vs. the current price. Mizuho upgrades Darden Restaurants (DRI)
• Positive Sentiment: Melius Research moved its rating from Hold to Buy, adding to analyst bullishness that can support upward momentum in the stock. Melius Research upgrade (Finviz link)
• Positive Sentiment: Company fundamentals and shareholder returns remain supportive: FY2026 guidance was set at $10.50–$10.70 EPS and the firm announced a $1.50 quarterly dividend (annualized $6.00). Those items underpin earnings visibility and yield appeal for income-focused investors. MarketBeat Darden Restaurants coverage
• Neutral Sentiment: Raymond James reiterated a Market Perform rating, signaling some analysts remain cautious and limiting consensus conviction despite upgrades. Raymond James Reiterates Market Perform for Darden
• Neutral Sentiment: Valuation discussion: recent coverage (Yahoo Finance) highlights mixed share performance vs. fundamentals — investors are weighing the higher multiple against steady cash flow and brand strength. A Look At Darden Restaurants (DRI) Valuation
• Negative Sentiment: Insider selling: Director John Wilkerson sold 2,258 shares at roughly $213, reducing his stake ~11%. While insider sales can be routine, they can pressure sentiment if they repeat. John Wilkerson insider sale
• Negative Sentiment: Another insider, Rajesh Vennam, sold 6,774 shares — additional insider exits add to short-term headwinds for sentiment. Rajesh Vennam Sells DRI Shares

Darden Restaurants Stock Performance

Shares of DRI stock opened at $205.93 on Monday. The company’s fifty day moving average price is $188.79 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $194.06. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.03, a current ratio of 0.39 and a quick ratio of 0.26. The firm has a market capitalization of $23.71 billion, a P/E ratio of 21.59, a P/E/G ratio of 1.98 and a beta of 0.64. Darden Restaurants, Inc. has a 12 month low of $169.00 and a 12 month high of $228.27.

Darden Restaurants (NYSE:DRI) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, December 18th. The restaurant operator reported $2.08 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.10 by ($0.02). The business had revenue of $3.10 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations 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 previous year, the firm posted $2.03 earnings per share. Darden Restaurants has set its FY 2026 guidance at 10.500-10.700 EPS. On average, research analysts anticipate that Darden Restaurants, Inc. will post 9.52 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Darden Restaurants Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, February 2nd. Stockholders of record on Friday, January 9th will be paid a dividend of $1.50 per share. This represents a $6.00 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.9%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, January 9th. Darden Restaurants’s dividend payout ratio is 62.89%.

Insider Activity at Darden Restaurants

In related news, insider John W. Wilkerson sold 2,258 shares of Darden Restaurants stock in a transaction on Friday, January 16th. The shares were sold at an average price of $213.00, for a total value of $480,954.00. Following the completion of the sale, the insider owned 17,784 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,787,992. The trade was a 11.27% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, CFO Rajesh Vennam sold 6,774 shares of the stock in a transaction on Thursday, January 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $214.12, for a total transaction of $1,450,448.88. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer owned 9,040 shares in the company, valued at $1,935,644.80. This trade represents a 42.84% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Insiders sold a total of 18,770 shares of company stock worth $3,948,970 over the last three months. 0.49% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

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.