Spire Wealth Management Boosts Stock Holdings in Darden Restaurants, Inc. (NYSE:DRI)

Spire Wealth Management boosted its position in Darden Restaurants, Inc. (NYSE:DRI) by 33.0% in the fourth quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The institutional investor owned 36,177 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock after purchasing an additional 8,969 shares during the period. Spire Wealth Management’s holdings in Darden Restaurants were worth $5,761,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Other hedge funds have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. lifted its stake in shares of Darden Restaurants by 2.1% during the 3rd quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 2,576,948 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock valued at $369,070,000 after buying an additional 52,864 shares in the last quarter. Victory Capital Management Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Darden Restaurants by 9.6% in the third quarter. Victory Capital Management Inc. now owns 2,290,224 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock worth $328,006,000 after buying an additional 200,342 shares in the last quarter. Raymond James & Associates boosted its position in shares of Darden Restaurants by 7.3% in the fourth quarter. Raymond James & Associates now owns 1,968,301 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock valued at $323,392,000 after acquiring an additional 134,098 shares during the period. Morgan Stanley boosted its position in shares of Darden Restaurants by 13.8% in the third quarter. Morgan Stanley now owns 1,669,789 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock valued at $239,148,000 after acquiring an additional 202,139 shares during the period. Finally, Wellington Management Group LLP grew its stake in Darden Restaurants by 0.6% during the third quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 1,639,513 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock valued at $234,811,000 after acquiring an additional 9,232 shares in the last quarter. 93.64% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Darden Restaurants Trading Down 1.2 %

NYSE DRI traded down $1.83 on Monday, hitting $147.42. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 1,545,205 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,180,609. The firm has a market cap of $17.60 billion, a P/E ratio of 17.42, a PEG ratio of 1.64 and a beta of 1.27. Darden Restaurants, Inc. has a 52-week low of $133.36 and a 52-week high of $176.84. The company’s 50-day simple moving average is $163.05 and its 200 day simple moving average is $160.01. The company has a current ratio of 0.39, a quick ratio of 0.25 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.63.

Darden Restaurants (NYSE:DRI) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, March 21st. The restaurant operator reported $2.62 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.63 by ($0.01). The business had revenue of $2.97 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $3.02 billion. Darden Restaurants had a return on equity of 49.94% and a net margin of 9.24%. The business’s revenue was up 6.8% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $2.34 EPS. Research analysts predict that Darden Restaurants, Inc. will post 8.85 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Darden Restaurants Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, May 1st. Investors of record on Wednesday, April 10th were given a dividend of $1.31 per share. This represents a $5.24 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.55%. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, April 9th. Darden Restaurants’s dividend payout ratio is currently 61.43%.

Darden Restaurants announced that its Board of Directors has approved a share repurchase program on Thursday, March 21st that authorizes the company to repurchase $1.00 billion in outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization authorizes the restaurant operator to purchase up to 5% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares repurchase programs are generally an indication that the company’s leadership believes its stock is undervalued.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research analysts have commented on the stock. Citigroup cut their price target on shares of Darden Restaurants from $200.00 to $192.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Friday, March 22nd. Guggenheim upped their target price on Darden Restaurants from $180.00 to $185.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, March 19th. BMO Capital Markets lifted their price target on Darden Restaurants from $160.00 to $165.00 and gave the company a “market perform” rating in a research report on Thursday, March 7th. Stephens initiated coverage on Darden Restaurants in a report on Friday, April 12th. They set an “equal weight” rating and a $170.00 price objective for the company. Finally, TD Cowen restated a “buy” rating and set a $190.00 price objective on shares of Darden Restaurants in a research report on Monday, April 22nd. Five investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and fifteen have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $178.85.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Darden Restaurants news, SVP Matthew R. Broad sold 4,707 shares of Darden Restaurants stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, April 25th. The stock was sold at an average price of $156.15, for a total transaction of $734,998.05. Following the sale, the senior vice president now directly owns 19,179 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,994,800.85. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. In related news, Director William S. Simon sold 1,219 shares of Darden Restaurants stock in a transaction dated Monday, April 8th. The shares were sold at an average price of $158.21, for a total transaction of $192,857.99. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now directly owns 6,281 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $993,717.01. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, SVP Matthew R. Broad sold 4,707 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, April 25th. The stock was sold at an average price of $156.15, for a total transaction of $734,998.05. Following the sale, the senior vice president now directly owns 19,179 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,994,800.85. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 13,599 shares of company stock valued at $2,197,891 over the last three months. Corporate insiders own 0.85% of the company’s stock.

Darden Restaurants 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.