Stephens Begins Coverage on Darden Restaurants (NYSE:DRI)

Stephens started coverage on shares of Darden Restaurants (NYSE:DRI) in a research report sent to investors on Friday, MarketBeat reports. The firm issued an equal weight rating and a $170.00 target price on the restaurant operator’s stock.

DRI has been the subject of a number of other research reports. Bank of America increased their target price on shares of Darden Restaurants from $193.00 to $198.00 and gave the stock a buy rating in a research report on Monday, March 18th. Raymond James increased their target price on shares of Darden Restaurants from $155.00 to $175.00 and gave the stock an outperform rating in a research report on Monday, December 18th. Morgan Stanley cut their target price on shares of Darden Restaurants from $184.00 to $180.00 and set an overweight rating for the company in a research report on Friday, March 22nd. Truist Financial reiterated a buy rating and issued a $190.00 target price on shares of Darden Restaurants in a research report on Friday, March 22nd. Finally, TD Cowen reiterated a buy rating and issued a $190.00 target price on shares of Darden Restaurants in a research report on Wednesday, April 10th. Five equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and fifteen have given a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of Moderate Buy and an average target price of $178.85.

Darden Restaurants Trading Up 0.7 %

Shares of NYSE:DRI opened at $154.06 on Friday. The stock has a market capitalization of $18.39 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 18.06, a PEG ratio of 1.68 and a beta of 1.25. Darden Restaurants has a 1-year low of $133.36 and a 1-year high of $176.84. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.63, a quick ratio of 0.25 and a current ratio of 0.39. The company has a 50 day moving average price of $166.35 and a 200 day moving average price of $158.59.

Darden Restaurants (NYSE:DRI) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, March 21st. The restaurant operator reported $2.62 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $2.63 by ($0.01). The firm had revenue of $2.97 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $3.02 billion. Darden Restaurants had a net margin of 9.24% and a return on equity of 49.94%. The firm’s revenue was up 6.8% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the company posted $2.34 EPS. On average, research analysts anticipate that Darden Restaurants will post 8.85 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Darden Restaurants Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, May 1st. Investors of record on Wednesday, April 10th will be issued a dividend of $1.31 per share. This represents a $5.24 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.40%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, April 9th. Darden Restaurants’s dividend payout ratio is currently 61.43%.

Darden Restaurants declared that its board has authorized a stock buyback plan on Thursday, March 21st that authorizes the company to repurchase $1.00 billion in shares. This repurchase authorization authorizes the restaurant operator to buy up to 5% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase plans are typically a sign that the company’s leadership believes its shares are undervalued.

Insider Activity

In other news, Director William S. Simon sold 1,219 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, April 8th. The shares were sold at an average price of $158.21, for a total value of $192,857.99. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now owns 6,281 shares in the company, valued at $993,717.01. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. In other news, SVP Matthew R. Broad sold 6,831 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, January 31st. The shares were sold at an average price of $163.26, for a total value of $1,115,229.06. Following the sale, the senior vice president now owns 19,141 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $3,124,959.66. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, Director William S. Simon sold 1,219 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Monday, April 8th. The stock was sold at an average price of $158.21, for a total transaction of $192,857.99. Following the completion of the sale, the director now directly owns 6,281 shares in the company, valued at approximately $993,717.01. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 15,723 shares of company stock worth $2,578,122 over the last quarter. 0.85% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Institutional Trading of Darden Restaurants

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Victory Capital Management Inc. increased its holdings in shares of Darden Restaurants by 223.4% in the fourth quarter. Victory Capital Management Inc. now owns 1,549,545 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock valued at $214,349,000 after purchasing an additional 1,070,472 shares during the last quarter. Morgan Stanley increased its holdings in shares of Darden Restaurants by 51.1% in the fourth quarter. Morgan Stanley now owns 1,573,384 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock valued at $217,646,000 after purchasing an additional 532,340 shares during the last quarter. BlackRock Inc. increased its holdings in shares of Darden Restaurants by 5.4% in the first quarter. BlackRock Inc. now owns 8,899,291 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock valued at $1,380,814,000 after purchasing an additional 455,588 shares during the last quarter. Ameriprise Financial Inc. increased its holdings in shares of Darden Restaurants by 55.9% in the third quarter. Ameriprise Financial Inc. now owns 1,168,604 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock valued at $167,359,000 after purchasing an additional 418,860 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Wellington Management Group LLP grew its stake in shares of Darden Restaurants by 33.5% in the first quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 1,572,849 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock valued at $209,110,000 after acquiring an additional 394,786 shares in the last quarter. 93.64% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

About Darden Restaurants

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.