Darden Restaurants (NYSE:DRI) Given Equal Weight Rating at Stephens

Stephens reaffirmed their equal weight rating on shares of Darden Restaurants (NYSE:DRI) in a research report sent to investors on Friday, Benzinga reports. Stephens currently has a $165.00 target price on the restaurant operator’s stock.

DRI has been the topic of a number of other research reports. Stifel Nicolaus cut their target price on shares of Darden Restaurants from $190.00 to $180.00 and set a buy rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, June 21st. Truist Financial reissued a buy rating and issued a $190.00 target price on shares of Darden Restaurants in a research report on Friday, March 22nd. Evercore ISI dropped their target price 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. Citigroup lifted their price target on shares of Darden Restaurants from $191.00 to $192.00 and gave the company a buy rating in a report on Friday, June 21st. Finally, Wedbush reaffirmed an outperform rating and issued a $170.00 price target on shares of Darden Restaurants in a report on Thursday. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, five have given a hold rating and seventeen have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Darden Restaurants has an average rating of Moderate Buy and an average price target of $171.95.

Darden Restaurants Stock Down 0.0 %

Shares of NYSE DRI opened at $142.86 on Friday. Darden Restaurants has a 1 year low of $133.36 and a 1 year high of $176.84. The firm’s 50 day moving average price is $148.30 and its 200 day moving average price is $157.28. The firm has a market cap of $17.05 billion, a P/E ratio of 16.77, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.70 and a beta of 1.29. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.61, a quick ratio of 0.24 and a current ratio of 0.38.

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 analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.61 by $0.04. The firm had revenue of $3 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.97 billion. Darden Restaurants had a net margin of 9.02% and a return on equity of 49.82%. Darden Restaurants’s revenue was up 8.3% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the business earned $2.58 earnings per share. As a group, sell-side analysts anticipate that Darden Restaurants will post 9.47 earnings per share for the current year.

Darden Restaurants Cuts Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, August 15th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, July 11th will be issued a $1.29 dividend. This represents a $5.16 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.61%. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, July 10th. Darden Restaurants’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 65.73%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, SVP Matthew R. Broad sold 4,707 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred 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 sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. 0.85% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Darden Restaurants

Hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the company. Rise Advisors LLC lifted its position in shares of Darden Restaurants by 131.3% in the 1st quarter. Rise Advisors LLC now owns 155 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock valued at $26,000 after acquiring an additional 88 shares in the last quarter. ESL Trust Services LLC acquired a new position in Darden Restaurants in the 1st quarter valued at $27,000. Fortitude Family Office LLC acquired a new position in Darden Restaurants in the 4th quarter valued at $29,000. Hartford Financial Management Inc. grew its stake in Darden Restaurants by 65.1% in the 4th quarter. Hartford Financial Management Inc. now owns 180 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock valued at $30,000 after buying an additional 71 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Tennessee Valley Asset Management Partners acquired a new stake in Darden Restaurants in the 4th quarter worth $33,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 93.64% of the company’s stock.

Darden Restaurants Company 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.