Andra AP fonden Takes $6.14 Million Position in Darden Restaurants, Inc. (NYSE:DRI)

Andra AP fonden acquired a new position in Darden Restaurants, Inc. (NYSE:DRI - Free Report) in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor acquired 32,900 shares of the restaurant operator's stock, valued at approximately $6,142,000.

Other large investors also recently modified their holdings of the company. Beacon Harbor Wealth Advisors Inc. purchased a new position in Darden Restaurants during the 4th quarter worth $205,000. Raymond James Financial Inc. purchased a new position in Darden Restaurants during the fourth quarter worth about $642,967,000. First Business Financial Services Inc. grew its position in Darden Restaurants by 3.4% in the 4th quarter. First Business Financial Services Inc. now owns 11,247 shares of the restaurant operator's stock worth $2,100,000 after purchasing an additional 369 shares in the last quarter. Cullen Frost Bankers Inc. increased its stake in Darden Restaurants by 9.8% in the 4th quarter. Cullen Frost Bankers Inc. now owns 842 shares of the restaurant operator's stock valued at $157,000 after buying an additional 75 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Proficio Capital Partners LLC purchased a new stake in Darden Restaurants in the 4th quarter valued at about $17,949,000. Institutional investors own 93.64% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities analysts have recently issued reports on the company. Oppenheimer upped their target price on Darden Restaurants from $200.00 to $218.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a report on Tuesday, January 7th. Citigroup decreased their target price on Darden Restaurants from $209.00 to $206.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, December 4th. Raymond James boosted their price target on shares of Darden Restaurants from $200.00 to $210.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a report on Tuesday, January 28th. UBS Group raised their price objective on shares of Darden Restaurants from $195.00 to $210.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Friday, December 20th. Finally, Wedbush lifted their price objective on shares of Darden Restaurants from $200.00 to $220.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research report on Friday, December 20th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have given a hold rating and seventeen have issued a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Darden Restaurants currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $192.52.

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Insider Activity at Darden Restaurants

In related news, insider Todd Burrowes sold 15,783 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, January 14th. The stock was sold at an average price of $183.03, for a total transaction of $2,888,762.49. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now owns 46,288 shares in the company, valued at $8,472,092.64. This represents a 25.43 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, SVP Douglas J. Milanes sold 7,892 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Thursday, January 30th. The stock was sold at an average price of $195.95, for a total transaction of $1,546,437.40. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president now directly owns 3,914 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $766,948.30. The trade was a 66.85 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 52,926 shares of company stock worth $9,850,129 in the last three months. 0.58% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Darden Restaurants Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:DRI traded up $0.81 on Wednesday, hitting $190.20. The company's stock had a trading volume of 1,244,704 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,155,072. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.02, a current ratio of 0.37 and a quick ratio of 0.23. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $191.21 and a 200 day simple moving average of $175.03. The company has a market capitalization of $22.28 billion, a PE ratio of 21.79, a PEG ratio of 2.15 and a beta of 1.27. Darden Restaurants, Inc. has a 1 year low of $135.87 and a 1 year high of $203.12.

Darden Restaurants (NYSE:DRI - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, December 19th. The restaurant operator reported $2.03 earnings per share for the quarter, meeting the consensus estimate of $2.03. Darden Restaurants had a net margin of 9.01% and a return on equity of 50.12%. The firm had revenue of $2.89 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $2.87 billion. During the same quarter last year, the company posted $1.84 EPS. The business's quarterly revenue was up 6.0% on a year-over-year basis. Sell-side analysts forecast that Darden Restaurants, Inc. will post 9.52 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Darden Restaurants Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, February 3rd. Investors of record on Friday, January 10th were paid a $1.40 dividend. This represents a $5.60 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.94%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, January 10th. Darden Restaurants's payout ratio is 64.15%.

Darden Restaurants 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.