Darden Restaurants, Inc. (NYSE:DRI) Shares Sold by Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership

Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership reduced its stake in shares of Darden Restaurants, Inc. (NYSE:DRI - Free Report) by 32.2% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The firm owned 572,801 shares of the restaurant operator's stock after selling 271,646 shares during the period. Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership owned approximately 0.49% of Darden Restaurants worth $106,936,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of the company. Kestra Investment Management LLC acquired a new stake in Darden Restaurants during the fourth quarter worth about $25,000. Compass Wealth Management LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Darden Restaurants during the 4th quarter worth approximately $28,000. TCTC Holdings LLC purchased a new position in shares of Darden Restaurants during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $28,000. MCF Advisors LLC lifted its stake in shares of Darden Restaurants by 50.9% in the 4th quarter. MCF Advisors LLC now owns 175 shares of the restaurant operator's stock valued at $33,000 after purchasing an additional 59 shares during the period. Finally, HHM Wealth Advisors LLC boosted its holdings in Darden Restaurants by 103.2% during the fourth quarter. HHM Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 254 shares of the restaurant operator's stock worth $47,000 after buying an additional 129 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 93.64% of the company's stock.

Darden Restaurants Trading Up 0.9 %

Shares of NYSE DRI traded up $1.84 during midday trading on Tuesday, reaching $209.60. 986,553 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,274,931. The stock has a market capitalization of $24.55 billion, a P/E ratio of 24.01, a PEG ratio of 2.15 and a beta of 1.27. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.02, a quick ratio of 0.23 and a current ratio of 0.37. The company has a 50 day simple moving average of $195.61 and a 200 day simple moving average of $179.32. Darden Restaurants, Inc. has a twelve month low of $135.87 and a twelve month high of $211.00.

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Darden Restaurants (NYSE:DRI - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, March 20th. The restaurant operator reported $2.80 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, hitting the consensus estimate of $2.80. Darden Restaurants had a return on equity of 50.12% and a net margin of 9.01%. The company had revenue of $3.16 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $3.22 billion. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $2.60 earnings per share. The firm's quarterly revenue was up 6.2% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, equities analysts expect that Darden Restaurants, Inc. will post 9.52 earnings per share for the current year.

Darden Restaurants Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, May 1st. Shareholders of record on Thursday, April 10th will be given a dividend of $1.40 per share. This represents a $5.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.67%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, April 10th. Darden Restaurants's dividend payout ratio is presently 63.13%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research analysts have weighed in on DRI shares. BMO Capital Markets upped their price objective on shares of Darden Restaurants from $175.00 to $190.00 and gave the stock a "market perform" rating in a research report on Friday, March 21st. Oppenheimer upped their price target on Darden Restaurants from $218.00 to $230.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a report on Friday, March 21st. UBS Group raised their price objective on Darden Restaurants from $210.00 to $225.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Friday, March 21st. Guggenheim upped their target price on Darden Restaurants from $205.00 to $220.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Monday, March 24th. Finally, TD Securities lifted their price target on shares of Darden Restaurants from $180.00 to $190.00 and gave the company a "hold" rating in a research note on Friday, March 21st. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have issued a hold rating and seventeen have given a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $202.08.

Insider Activity

In related news, SVP Susan M. Connelly sold 9,264 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Monday, January 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $184.68, for a total value of $1,710,875.52. Following the sale, the senior vice president now owns 4,567 shares in the company, valued at approximately $843,433.56. The trade was a 66.98 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, insider Todd Burrowes sold 15,783 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, January 14th. The stock was sold at an average price of $183.03, for a total value of $2,888,762.49. Following the transaction, the insider now directly owns 46,288 shares in the company, valued at approximately $8,472,092.64. The trade was a 25.43 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last three months, insiders have sold 70,311 shares of company stock valued at $13,658,221. Company insiders own 0.58% of the company's stock.

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.