Darden Restaurants (NYSE:DRI) Price Target Raised to $220.00

Darden Restaurants (NYSE:DRI) had its target price increased by investment analysts at Stephens from $216.00 to $220.00 in a report released on Friday, Benzinga reports. The brokerage presently has an “equal weight” rating on the restaurant operator’s stock. Stephens’ target price points to a potential upside of 5.87% from the company’s current price.

Several other equities research analysts also recently weighed in on DRI. Bank of America increased their price target on Darden Restaurants from $272.00 to $276.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, June 5th. BMO Capital Markets restated a “market perform” rating on shares of Darden Restaurants in a report on Monday, June 22nd. Piper Sandler upped their price objective on Darden Restaurants from $208.00 to $212.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Friday, June 26th. Robert W. Baird upgraded Darden Restaurants from a “neutral” rating to an “outperform” rating and increased their target price for the stock from $220.00 to $250.00 in a research note on Monday, August 24th. Finally, UBS Group lifted their target price on Darden Restaurants from $230.00 to $240.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, June 26th. Eighteen equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and nine have given a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Darden Restaurants has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $230.67.

Darden Restaurants Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE:DRI opened at $207.81 on Friday. The company has a market capitalization of $23.71 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 20.02, a PEG ratio of 1.97 and a beta of 0.60. Darden Restaurants has a 12 month low of $169.00 and a 12 month high of $229.76. The firm’s 50-day moving average is $210.02 and its 200 day moving average is $204.71. The company has a current ratio of 0.31, a quick ratio of 0.21 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.74.

Darden Restaurants (NYSE:DRI) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, June 25th. The restaurant operator reported $3.66 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $3.63 by $0.03. Darden Restaurants had a net margin of 9.13% and a return on equity of 57.44%. The business had revenue of $3.72 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $3.73 billion. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $2.98 earnings per share. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 13.7% compared to the same quarter last year. Darden Restaurants has set its FY 2027 guidance at 11.100-11.350 EPS. Research analysts predict that Darden Restaurants will post 11.25 EPS for the current year.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Darden Restaurants news, CFO Rajesh Vennam sold 8,478 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, July 29th. The stock was sold at an average price of $210.00, for a total value of $1,780,380.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer directly owned 8,569 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,799,490. This represents a 49.73% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, CEO Ricardo Cardenas sold 39,134 shares of the stock in a transaction on Tuesday, July 28th. The stock was sold at an average price of $209.06, for a total value of $8,181,354.04. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer directly owned 86,146 shares in the company, valued at $18,009,682.76. The trade was a 31.24% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Insiders have sold 70,185 shares of company stock valued at $14,636,984 over the last 90 days. 0.67% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Institutional Trading of Darden Restaurants

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in DRI. California State Teachers Retirement System increased its position in Darden Restaurants by 25,118.0% during the 2nd quarter. California State Teachers Retirement System now owns 35,137,478 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock valued at $7,238,672,000 after purchasing an additional 34,998,143 shares during the period. Capital World Investors lifted its position in shares of Darden Restaurants by 2.2% in the 4th quarter. Capital World Investors now owns 15,161,277 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock worth $2,790,128,000 after purchasing an additional 322,079 shares during the period. BlackRock Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Darden Restaurants in the 2nd quarter worth approximately $2,015,109,000. Wellington Management Group LLP boosted its stake in shares of Darden Restaurants by 81.0% during the fourth quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 8,077,567 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock valued at $1,486,434,000 after purchasing an additional 3,613,781 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. boosted its stake in shares of Darden Restaurants by 1.7% during the fourth quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 4,189,868 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock valued at $771,020,000 after purchasing an additional 68,245 shares in the last quarter. 93.64% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Darden Restaurants Company Profile

Darden Restaurants, Inc (NYSE: DRI) is a full-service restaurant company headquartered in Orlando, Florida. It operates and franchises a portfolio of dining brands serving a range of cuisines, price points and occasions, with restaurants primarily located in the United States and select international markets.

Its restaurant portfolio includes Olive Garden, an Italian-American dining chain; LongHorn Steakhouse; Cheddar’s Scratch Kitchen; Yard House; The Capital Grille; Seasons 52; Bahama Breeze; Eddie V’s; Ruth’s Chris Steak House; and Chuy’s.