Ontario Teachers Pension Plan Board Invests $409,000 in Darden Restaurants, Inc. (NYSE:DRI)

Ontario Teachers Pension Plan Board purchased a new position in Darden Restaurants, Inc. (NYSE:DRI) during the third quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund purchased 2,493 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock, valued at approximately $409,000.

Several other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in DRI. Mizuho Securities USA LLC raised its stake in shares of Darden Restaurants by 96,162.9% in the third quarter. Mizuho Securities USA LLC now owns 8,861,000 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock valued at $1,454,356,000 after buying an additional 8,851,795 shares during the period. International Assets Investment Management LLC raised its stake in Darden Restaurants by 16,996.9% in the 3rd quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC now owns 377,500 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock valued at $61,959,000 after acquiring an additional 375,292 shares during the period. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA lifted its holdings in Darden Restaurants by 71.3% during the second quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA now owns 696,176 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock valued at $105,345,000 after purchasing an additional 289,876 shares during the last quarter. Toronto Dominion Bank boosted its position in Darden Restaurants by 139.9% during the second quarter. Toronto Dominion Bank now owns 352,344 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock worth $53,317,000 after purchasing an additional 205,450 shares during the period. Finally, Hsbc Holdings PLC boosted its position in Darden Restaurants by 81.2% during the second quarter. Hsbc Holdings PLC now owns 457,114 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock worth $69,125,000 after purchasing an additional 204,832 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 93.64% of the company’s stock.

Darden Restaurants Trading Up 1.9 %

Shares of DRI stock opened at $167.70 on Friday. The company has a quick ratio of 0.22, a current ratio of 0.35 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.65. The firm has a market cap of $19.70 billion, a P/E ratio of 19.34, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.85 and a beta of 1.31. The business has a 50-day moving average price of $163.80 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $154.13. Darden Restaurants, Inc. has a 12-month low of $135.87 and a 12-month high of $176.84.

Darden Restaurants (NYSE:DRI) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, September 19th. The restaurant operator reported $1.75 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.83 by ($0.08). Darden Restaurants had a return on equity of 49.46% and a net margin of 9.11%. The business had revenue of $2.76 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $2.80 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned $1.78 EPS. Darden Restaurants’s revenue for the quarter was up 1.0% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities analysts anticipate that Darden Restaurants, Inc. will post 9.47 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Darden Restaurants Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, November 1st. Shareholders of record on Thursday, October 10th were given a $1.40 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, October 10th. This represents a $5.60 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.34%. This is an increase from Darden Restaurants’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.29. Darden Restaurants’s payout ratio is presently 64.59%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

DRI has been the topic of a number of recent research reports. Citigroup dropped their price target on shares of Darden Restaurants from $192.00 to $191.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, September 10th. UBS Group increased their target price on Darden Restaurants from $188.00 to $195.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, September 20th. BTIG Research raised their price target on Darden Restaurants from $175.00 to $195.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, September 20th. Evercore ISI upgraded Darden Restaurants from an “in-line” rating to an “outperform” rating and boosted their price objective for the company from $165.00 to $205.00 in a research note on Friday, September 20th. Finally, Piper Sandler raised their target price on Darden Restaurants from $159.00 to $177.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Friday, September 20th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have issued a hold rating and sixteen have given a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Darden Restaurants presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $180.13.

Insider Buying and Selling at Darden Restaurants

In other news, SVP Douglas J. Milanes sold 5,705 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, September 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $172.04, for a total value of $981,488.20. Following the completion of the sale, the senior vice president now directly owns 3,834 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $659,601.36. This trade represents a 59.81 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, CEO Ricardo Cardenas sold 42,403 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, September 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $171.68, for a total transaction of $7,279,747.04. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 58,685 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $10,075,040.80. This trade represents a 41.95 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 59,265 shares of company stock valued at $10,116,030 in the last quarter. Company insiders own 0.58% 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.