Darden Restaurants, Inc. (NYSE:DRI) Shares Sold by Beverly Hills Private Wealth LLC

Beverly Hills Private Wealth LLC trimmed its position in Darden Restaurants, Inc. (NYSE:DRI) by 6.6% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 3,062 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock after selling 215 shares during the quarter. Beverly Hills Private Wealth LLC’s holdings in Darden Restaurants were worth $503,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of the company. Quarry LP raised its holdings in Darden Restaurants by 980.0% during the second quarter. Quarry LP now owns 162 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock worth $27,000 after purchasing an additional 147 shares in the last quarter. Fortitude Family Office LLC acquired a new stake in Darden Restaurants during the 4th quarter worth $29,000. Hartford Financial Management Inc. lifted its position in Darden Restaurants by 65.1% in the fourth quarter. Hartford Financial Management Inc. now owns 180 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock valued at $30,000 after acquiring an additional 71 shares during the last quarter. Tennessee Valley Asset Management Partners acquired a new position in Darden Restaurants in the fourth quarter valued at $33,000. Finally, Resurgent Financial Advisors LLC purchased a new position in shares of Darden Restaurants during the fourth quarter worth about $29,000. 93.64% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Activity

In related news, SVP Matthew R. Broad sold 6,831 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred 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 completion of the sale, the senior vice president now directly owns 19,141 shares in the company, valued at $3,124,959.66. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. In related news, SVP Matthew R. Broad sold 6,831 shares of the stock in a transaction on Wednesday, January 31st. The stock was sold at an average price of $163.26, for a total value of $1,115,229.06. Following the transaction, the senior vice president now directly owns 19,141 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $3,124,959.66. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Also, Director William S. Simon sold 1,219 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, April 8th. The shares were sold at an average price of $158.21, for a total value of $192,857.99. Following the sale, the director now directly owns 6,281 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $993,717.01. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 15,723 shares of company stock valued at $2,578,122 in the last 90 days. 0.85% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research analysts have commented on the company. Morgan Stanley cut their price target on Darden Restaurants from $184.00 to $180.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, March 22nd. Raymond James upped their price target on shares of Darden Restaurants from $155.00 to $175.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Monday, December 18th. Stifel Nicolaus raised their price objective on shares of Darden Restaurants from $185.00 to $190.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, March 19th. BMO Capital Markets upped their target price on shares of Darden Restaurants from $160.00 to $165.00 and gave the company a “market perform” rating in a report on Thursday, March 7th. Finally, Guggenheim boosted their price target on Darden Restaurants from $180.00 to $185.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, March 19th. Five analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and fifteen have issued a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $178.85.

Darden Restaurants Trading Down 1.3 %

Shares of Darden Restaurants stock opened at $153.05 on Monday. Darden Restaurants, Inc. 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 current ratio of 0.39 and a quick ratio of 0.25. The business has a 50 day moving average price of $166.56 and a 200 day moving average price of $158.51. The company has a market capitalization of $18.27 billion, a P/E ratio of 17.94, a P/E/G ratio of 1.68 and a beta of 1.25.

Darden Restaurants (NYSE:DRI) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, March 21st. The restaurant operator reported $2.62 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.63 by ($0.01). The company had revenue of $2.97 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.02 billion. Darden Restaurants had a return on equity of 49.94% and a net margin of 9.24%. The business’s revenue was up 6.8% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the firm earned $2.34 earnings per share. Sell-side analysts anticipate that Darden Restaurants, Inc. will post 8.85 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Darden Restaurants announced that its board has initiated a stock repurchase program on Thursday, March 21st that allows the company to buyback $1.00 billion in shares. This buyback authorization allows the restaurant operator to purchase up to 5% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback programs are typically an indication that the company’s leadership believes its shares are undervalued.

Darden Restaurants Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, May 1st. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, April 10th will be issued a $1.31 dividend. This represents a $5.24 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.42%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, April 9th. Darden Restaurants’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 61.43%.

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.