Darden Restaurants, Inc. (NYSE:DRI) Given Average Recommendation of “Moderate Buy” by Analysts

Shares of Darden Restaurants, Inc. (NYSE:DRI) have been given a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” by the twenty-seven brokerages that are currently covering the stock, Marketbeat reports. Nine analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eighteen have issued a buy rating on the company. The average 1-year price target among brokers that have issued a report on the stock in the last year is $226.24.

Several equities research analysts have issued reports on the stock. Sanford C. Bernstein restated an “outperform” rating on shares of Darden Restaurants in a research report on Friday, March 13th. Morgan Stanley decreased their target price on Darden Restaurants from $238.00 to $236.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, December 12th. BMO Capital Markets increased their target price on Darden Restaurants from $205.00 to $220.00 and gave the stock a “market perform” rating in a research note on Tuesday, January 6th. Mizuho raised Darden Restaurants from a “neutral” rating to an “outperform” rating and lifted their price target for the stock from $195.00 to $235.00 in a report on Friday, January 23rd. Finally, Guggenheim decreased their price objective on Darden Restaurants from $235.00 to $230.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, December 17th.

Insider Buying and Selling at Darden Restaurants

In other Darden Restaurants news, insider Todd Burrowes sold 7,103 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, January 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $207.12, for a total transaction of $1,471,173.36. Following the transaction, the insider owned 44,252 shares in the company, valued at $9,165,474.24. This trade represents a 13.83% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, SVP Susan M. Connelly sold 2,635 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, January 14th. The stock was sold at an average price of $207.36, for a total value of $546,393.60. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president owned 4,098 shares in the company, valued at $849,761.28. The trade was a 39.14% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Insiders sold a total of 18,770 shares of company stock valued at $3,948,970 in the last three months. 0.49% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Institutional Trading of Darden Restaurants

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of DRI. Twin Peaks Wealth Advisors LLC bought a new stake in shares of Darden Restaurants during the second quarter worth about $26,000. Elevation Point Wealth Partners LLC bought a new position in Darden Restaurants in the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $29,000. Quent Capital LLC acquired a new stake in Darden Restaurants during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $27,000. Torren Management LLC acquired a new stake in Darden Restaurants during the 4th quarter worth approximately $26,000. Finally, Union Savings Bank bought a new stake in Darden Restaurants during the 4th quarter worth approximately $28,000. 93.64% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Darden Restaurants Price Performance

Shares of DRI opened at $198.66 on Friday. The firm has a market capitalization of $22.87 billion, a PE ratio of 21.02, a PEG ratio of 1.91 and a beta of 0.61. The company’s 50-day moving average is $207.26 and its 200-day moving average is $194.38. Darden Restaurants has a fifty-two week low of $169.00 and a fifty-two week high of $228.27. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.02, a current ratio of 0.39 and a quick ratio of 0.26.

Darden Restaurants (NYSE:DRI) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, March 19th. The restaurant operator reported $2.95 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.94 by $0.01. Darden Restaurants had a net margin of 8.66% and a return on equity of 53.54%. The company had revenue of $3.35 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $3.33 billion. During the same quarter last year, the company posted $2.80 EPS. Darden Restaurants’s quarterly revenue was up 5.9% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities analysts forecast that Darden Restaurants will post 9.52 EPS for the current year.

Darden Restaurants Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, May 1st. Investors of record on Friday, April 10th will be paid a $1.50 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Friday, April 10th. This represents a $6.00 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.0%. Darden Restaurants’s dividend payout ratio is 63.49%.

Darden Restaurants Company Profile

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.