Darden Restaurants (NYSE:DRI) Given New $232.00 Price Target at Barclays

Darden Restaurants (NYSE:DRI) had its target price boosted by Barclays from $227.00 to $232.00 in a report published on Friday,Benzinga reports. They currently have an overweight rating on the restaurant operator’s stock.

Several other research analysts have also commented on DRI. Melius Research upgraded shares of Darden Restaurants from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, January 23rd. BTIG Research reiterated a “buy” rating and set a $225.00 price objective on shares of Darden Restaurants in a research note on Friday. Guggenheim dropped their price objective on shares of Darden Restaurants from $235.00 to $230.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, December 17th. Bank of America raised their target price on shares of Darden Restaurants from $261.00 to $262.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, March 16th. Finally, Stephens lifted their target price on shares of Darden Restaurants from $205.00 to $210.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Friday. Eighteen equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and nine have issued a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $226.24.

Darden Restaurants Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE:DRI opened at $202.99 on Friday. The business has a 50-day moving average of $208.09 and a two-hundred day moving average of $194.66. The firm has a market capitalization of $23.37 billion, a PE ratio of 21.48, a P/E/G ratio of 1.99 and a beta of 0.61. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.02, a current ratio of 0.39 and a quick ratio of 0.26. Darden Restaurants has a 12 month low of $169.00 and a 12 month high of $228.27.

Darden Restaurants (NYSE:DRI) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, March 19th. The restaurant operator reported $2.95 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.94 by $0.01. Darden Restaurants had a return on equity of 53.54% and a net margin of 8.66%.The business had revenue of $3.35 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.33 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $2.80 EPS. The company’s revenue was up 5.9% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, research analysts forecast that Darden Restaurants will post 9.52 earnings per share for the current year.

Darden Restaurants Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, May 1st. Shareholders of record on Friday, April 10th will be given a $1.50 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, April 10th. This represents a $6.00 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.0%. Darden Restaurants’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 63.49%.

Insider Activity

In other news, SVP Susan M. Connelly sold 2,635 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, January 14th. The shares were sold at an average price of $207.36, for a total value of $546,393.60. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president directly owned 4,098 shares in the company, valued at approximately $849,761.28. This represents a 39.14% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Also, insider Todd Burrowes sold 7,103 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, January 13th. The shares were sold at an average price of $207.12, for a total transaction of $1,471,173.36. Following the sale, the insider directly owned 44,252 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $9,165,474.24. The trade was a 13.83% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Over the last ninety days, insiders have sold 18,770 shares of company stock worth $3,948,970. Company insiders own 0.49% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Darden Restaurants

A number of institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Boston Partners grew its stake in shares of Darden Restaurants by 19.7% during the second quarter. Boston Partners now owns 780,978 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock valued at $170,203,000 after acquiring an additional 128,468 shares in the last quarter. Cetera Investment Advisers increased its position in shares of Darden Restaurants by 9.5% during the second quarter. Cetera Investment Advisers now owns 56,276 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock worth $12,267,000 after acquiring an additional 4,866 shares during the last quarter. Avantax Advisory Services Inc. lifted its stake in shares of Darden Restaurants by 16.1% in the second quarter. Avantax Advisory Services Inc. now owns 12,327 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock worth $2,687,000 after acquiring an additional 1,708 shares in the last quarter. Rockefeller Capital Management L.P. boosted its holdings in Darden Restaurants by 19.7% in the second quarter. Rockefeller Capital Management L.P. now owns 23,352 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock valued at $5,090,000 after purchasing an additional 3,844 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Vanguard Group Inc. boosted its holdings in Darden Restaurants by 2.1% in the second quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 14,055,185 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock valued at $3,063,609,000 after purchasing an additional 284,814 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 93.64% of the company’s stock.

Key Headlines Impacting Darden Restaurants

Here are the key news stories impacting Darden Restaurants this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Q3 results and guidance lift — Darden reported $2.95 EPS (in line/just above consensus), revenue of $3.35B (+5.9% YoY) and raised its full?year outlook for sales and adjusted EPS, citing strength at LongHorn and unit growth. Management’s guidance lift is the primary catalyst for optimism. PR Newswire: Q3 Results & Outlook
• Positive Sentiment: Analysts lift targets and ratings — A wave of firms raised targets (Citigroup to $238, Deutsche Bank to $230, Barclays to $232, KeyCorp, BTIG, others), with several reaffirming Buy/Overweight ratings. That collective upward revision signals stronger Street momentum behind the stock. Benzinga: Analysts Increase Forecasts
• Positive Sentiment: Dividend declared & capital returns — Darden announced a quarterly dividend (covers April record / May pay date) and continues significant buybacks; MarketBeat highlights strong cash flow and share?count reduction as supportive of future returns. That makes the stock more attractive to income and valuation?focused investors. MarketBeat: Growth & Cash Flow
• Neutral Sentiment: Earnings call / transcripts available — Management held the Q3 call and released transcripts/slides (useful for digging into LFLs, unit?economics, weather impacts and cadence of buybacks). Investors should review the call for color on margins and FY26 assumptions. MSN: Q3 Earnings Call Transcript
• Negative Sentiment: One?time charges and brand exit — Darden took impairments and other one?offs tied to the Bahama Breeze review and planned closures/conversions; GAAP results look weaker as a result. These items compress near?term margins and add uncertainty around restructuring costs. MarketBeat: One?offs & Impairments
• Negative Sentiment: Risks flagged by some commentary — A few writeups note building risks (weather, commodity/labor pressure, and noise from restructuring) that could press margins even as revenue growth remains healthy. Seeking Alpha: Risks Building

Darden Restaurants Company Profile

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.