Chevy Chase Trust Holdings LLC Sells 987 Shares of Darden Restaurants, Inc. (NYSE:DRI)

Chevy Chase Trust Holdings LLC cut its holdings in shares of Darden Restaurants, Inc. (NYSE:DRI) by 1.5% during the 1st quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 66,222 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock after selling 987 shares during the quarter. Chevy Chase Trust Holdings LLC owned approximately 0.06% of Darden Restaurants worth $11,069,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other large investors also recently modified their holdings of DRI. Rise Advisors LLC boosted its position in Darden Restaurants by 131.3% during the first quarter. Rise Advisors LLC now owns 155 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock valued at $26,000 after purchasing an additional 88 shares during the last quarter. Fortitude Family Office LLC acquired a new position in Darden Restaurants during the fourth quarter worth $29,000. Hartford Financial Management Inc. raised its position in Darden Restaurants by 65.1% during the fourth quarter. Hartford Financial Management Inc. now owns 180 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock worth $30,000 after acquiring an additional 71 shares in the last quarter. Tennessee Valley Asset Management Partners bought a new stake in Darden Restaurants during the fourth quarter worth $33,000. Finally, McGlone Suttner Wealth Management Inc. acquired a new stake in Darden Restaurants in the fourth quarter valued at $35,000. 93.64% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of brokerages have recently issued reports on DRI. TD Cowen reaffirmed a “buy” rating and issued a $170.00 target price on shares of Darden Restaurants in a report on Thursday, June 20th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. dropped their price objective on Darden Restaurants from $176.00 to $165.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, May 28th. Oppenheimer reduced their target price on Darden Restaurants from $186.00 to $182.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, March 22nd. Bank of America increased their price target on Darden Restaurants from $180.00 to $185.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, June 21st. Finally, Evercore ISI reduced their price objective on shares of Darden Restaurants from $170.00 to $165.00 and set an “in-line” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, June 13th. Five analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seventeen have issued a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $174.24.

Insider Transactions at Darden Restaurants

In other news, SVP Matthew R. Broad sold 4,707 shares of the stock in a transaction on Thursday, April 25th. The shares were sold at an average price of $156.15, for a total transaction of $734,998.05. Following the completion of the sale, the senior vice president now directly owns 19,179 shares in the company, valued at $2,994,800.85. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Corporate insiders own 0.85% of the company’s stock.

Darden Restaurants Trading Down 2.3 %

NYSE DRI traded down $3.19 on Wednesday, hitting $137.10. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 1,345,503 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,195,859. The company’s 50-day moving average is $149.18 and its 200 day moving average is $158.42. The firm has a market cap of $16.36 billion, a PE ratio of 16.29, a PEG ratio of 1.66 and a beta of 1.29. Darden Restaurants, Inc. has a 1-year low of $133.36 and a 1-year high of $176.84. The company has a quick ratio of 0.24, a current ratio of 0.38 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.61.

Darden Restaurants (NYSE:DRI) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, June 20th. The restaurant operator reported $2.65 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.61 by $0.04. Darden Restaurants had a return on equity of 49.82% and a net margin of 9.02%. The business had revenue of $3 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.97 billion. During the same period last year, the company earned $2.58 EPS. Darden Restaurants’s revenue for the quarter was up 8.3% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, analysts predict that Darden Restaurants, Inc. will post 9.5 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Darden Restaurants Cuts Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, August 15th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, July 11th will be issued a dividend of $1.29 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, July 10th. This represents a $5.16 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.76%. Darden Restaurants’s payout ratio is 61.50%.

Darden Restaurants declared that its board has initiated a share repurchase program on Thursday, March 21st that allows the company to buyback $1.00 billion in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization allows the restaurant operator to repurchase up to 5% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback programs are generally a sign that the company’s board believes its shares are undervalued.

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.