Pacer Advisors Inc. Decreases Holdings in Darden Restaurants, Inc. $DRI

Pacer Advisors Inc. reduced its stake in Darden Restaurants, Inc. (NYSE:DRI) by 36.3% in the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 6,085 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock after selling 3,462 shares during the period. Pacer Advisors Inc.’s holdings in Darden Restaurants were worth $1,193,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Meridian Wealth Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Darden Restaurants during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $2,404,000. Sanctuary Advisors LLC grew its holdings in Darden Restaurants by 33.0% during the 4th quarter. Sanctuary Advisors LLC now owns 23,473 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock valued at $4,319,000 after purchasing an additional 5,830 shares in the last quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. grew its holdings in Darden Restaurants by 0.3% during the 4th quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 14,063,355 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock valued at $2,587,939,000 after purchasing an additional 43,965 shares in the last quarter. Fortis Capital Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in Darden Restaurants during the 4th quarter worth $1,007,000. Finally, Concurrent Investment Advisors LLC lifted its holdings in Darden Restaurants by 313.9% in the 4th quarter. Concurrent Investment Advisors LLC now owns 13,598 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock worth $2,502,000 after buying an additional 10,313 shares in the last quarter. 93.64% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Darden Restaurants Stock Performance

Darden Restaurants stock opened at $213.80 on Monday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.74, a current ratio of 0.31 and a quick ratio of 0.21. Darden Restaurants, Inc. has a 12 month low of $169.00 and a 12 month high of $220.65. The company has a fifty day moving average price of $204.17 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $203.04. The company has a market cap of $24.39 billion, a PE ratio of 20.60, a P/E/G ratio of 2.13 and a beta of 0.60.

Darden Restaurants (NYSE:DRI) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, June 25th. The restaurant operator reported $3.66 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $3.63 by $0.03. The firm had revenue of $3.72 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.73 billion. Darden Restaurants had a net margin of 9.13% and a return on equity of 57.44%. Darden Restaurants’s quarterly revenue was up 13.7% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned $2.98 earnings per share. Darden Restaurants has set its FY 2027 guidance at 11.100-11.350 EPS. Research analysts expect that Darden Restaurants, Inc. will post 11.28 earnings per share for the current year.

Darden Restaurants Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, August 3rd. Investors of record on Friday, July 10th were given a $1.62 dividend. This is a boost from Darden Restaurants’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.50. The ex-dividend date was Friday, July 10th. This represents a $6.48 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.0%. Darden Restaurants’s payout ratio is currently 62.43%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities analysts have weighed in on DRI shares. BTIG Research upped their price objective on shares of Darden Restaurants from $225.00 to $235.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, June 26th. Stephens boosted their price target on Darden Restaurants from $210.00 to $216.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Friday, June 26th. Weiss Ratings lowered Darden Restaurants from a “buy (b)” rating to a “buy (b-)” rating in a research note on Tuesday, July 28th. Citigroup lifted their price objective on Darden Restaurants from $238.00 to $245.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, June 15th. Finally, Argus upped their target price on Darden Restaurants from $240.00 to $245.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, June 30th. Seventeen analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and ten have assigned a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, Darden Restaurants currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $228.88.

Insider Transactions at Darden Restaurants

In other Darden Restaurants news, insider Laura B. Williamson sold 1,110 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, July 31st. The stock was sold at an average price of $204.32, for a total transaction of $226,795.20. Following the transaction, the insider owned 10,754 shares in the company, valued at $2,197,257.28. This trade represents a 9.36% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Also, insider John W. Wilkerson sold 8,864 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, August 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $208.33, for a total transaction of $1,846,637.12. Following the completion of the sale, the insider owned 18,794 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $3,915,354.02. The trade was a 32.05% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. In the last ninety days, insiders have sold 70,185 shares of company stock worth $14,636,984. 0.49% of the stock is currently owned by 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.