Marietta Wealth Management LLC Boosts Stake in Darden Restaurants, Inc. (NYSE:DRI)

Marietta Wealth Management LLC raised its stake in Darden Restaurants, Inc. (NYSE:DRI) by 2.1% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 16,804 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock after acquiring an additional 342 shares during the quarter. Marietta Wealth Management LLC’s holdings in Darden Restaurants were worth $2,761,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the company. Quarry LP raised its stake in Darden Restaurants by 980.0% in the 2nd quarter. Quarry LP now owns 162 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock valued at $27,000 after purchasing an additional 147 shares during the last quarter. Fortitude Family Office LLC acquired a new position in shares of Darden Restaurants in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $29,000. Resurgent Financial Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in Darden Restaurants during the fourth quarter worth approximately $29,000. Hartford Financial Management Inc. raised its holdings in Darden Restaurants by 65.1% in the 4th 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. Finally, Tennessee Valley Asset Management Partners acquired a new position in Darden Restaurants in the 4th quarter valued at $33,000. 93.64% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of brokerages have recently commented on DRI. Wedbush lowered their price objective on Darden Restaurants from $187.00 to $181.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, March 22nd. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their price objective on shares of Darden Restaurants from $170.00 to $180.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Tuesday, March 19th. Stephens assumed coverage on shares of Darden Restaurants in a research report on Friday. They issued an “equal weight” rating and a $170.00 target price on the stock. Stifel Nicolaus upped their price target 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. Finally, Morgan Stanley decreased their price target on shares of Darden Restaurants from $184.00 to $180.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, March 22nd. Five research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and fifteen have given a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $178.85.

Insider Transactions at Darden Restaurants

In other news, Director William S. Simon sold 1,219 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Monday, April 8th. The shares were sold at an average price of $158.21, for a total transaction of $192,857.99. Following the transaction, the director now owns 6,281 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $993,717.01. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. In other Darden Restaurants 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 transaction of $1,115,229.06. Following the completion of the sale, the senior vice president now 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 can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, Director William S. Simon sold 1,219 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated 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 transaction, the director now owns 6,281 shares in the company, valued at $993,717.01. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last 90 days, insiders sold 15,723 shares of company stock valued at $2,578,122. Insiders own 0.85% of the company’s stock.

Darden Restaurants Stock Up 0.4 %

Shares of Darden Restaurants stock traded up $0.55 during trading hours on Tuesday, hitting $154.61. 408,654 shares of the company’s stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 1,147,089. Darden Restaurants, Inc. has a twelve month low of $133.36 and a twelve month high of $176.84. The company has a market cap of $18.45 billion, a PE ratio of 18.06, a PEG ratio of 1.68 and a beta of 1.25. The company has a quick ratio of 0.25, a current ratio of 0.39 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.63. The stock has a 50 day simple moving average of $166.35 and a 200-day simple moving average of $158.59.

Darden Restaurants (NYSE:DRI) last issued its quarterly earnings data 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). Darden Restaurants had a net margin of 9.24% and a return on equity of 49.94%. The business had revenue of $2.97 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.02 billion. During the same quarter last year, the business earned $2.34 EPS. Darden Restaurants’s revenue for the quarter was up 6.8% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities research analysts anticipate that Darden Restaurants, Inc. will post 8.85 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Darden Restaurants Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, May 1st. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, April 10th will be issued a dividend of $1.31 per share. This represents a $5.24 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.39%. 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 of Directors has approved a share 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 purchase up to 5% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase plans are typically an indication that the company’s leadership believes its stock is undervalued.

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.