BI Asset Management Fondsmaeglerselskab A S Boosts Holdings in Darden Restaurants, Inc. (NYSE:DRI)

BI Asset Management Fondsmaeglerselskab A S raised its holdings in shares of Darden Restaurants, Inc. (NYSE:DRI - Free Report) by 181.9% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 8,476 shares of the restaurant operator's stock after buying an additional 5,469 shares during the period. BI Asset Management Fondsmaeglerselskab A S's holdings in Darden Restaurants were worth $1,582,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in DRI. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. grew its stake in shares of Darden Restaurants by 4.8% during the 4th quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 3,750,658 shares of the restaurant operator's stock valued at $700,210,000 after acquiring an additional 170,336 shares during the period. Raymond James Financial Inc. bought a new position in shares of Darden Restaurants in the fourth quarter worth approximately $642,967,000. Geode Capital Management LLC increased its stake in shares of Darden Restaurants by 1.4% in the fourth quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 2,845,302 shares of the restaurant operator's stock worth $530,121,000 after purchasing an additional 39,189 shares in the last quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP raised its position in shares of Darden Restaurants by 9.9% during the 4th quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 1,282,666 shares of the restaurant operator's stock valued at $239,466,000 after purchasing an additional 116,047 shares during the period. Finally, Bank of New York Mellon Corp lifted its stake in shares of Darden Restaurants by 10.9% during the 4th quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 1,046,774 shares of the restaurant operator's stock valued at $195,422,000 after buying an additional 102,888 shares in the last quarter. 93.64% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Darden Restaurants Price Performance

Shares of DRI stock opened at $202.60 on Wednesday. The company has a market capitalization of $23.71 billion, a P/E ratio of 23.21, a P/E/G ratio of 2.15 and a beta of 0.93. The company's 50-day simple moving average is $196.31 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $182.74. Darden Restaurants, Inc. has a one year low of $135.87 and a one year high of $211.00. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.02, a current ratio of 0.37 and a quick ratio of 0.23.

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

Darden Restaurants Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, May 1st. Stockholders of record on Thursday, April 10th will be issued a $1.40 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, April 10th. This represents a $5.60 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.76%. Darden Restaurants's dividend payout ratio is currently 63.13%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities research analysts have issued reports on DRI shares. Stephens increased their price target on Darden Restaurants from $175.00 to $178.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a research note on Friday, March 21st. UBS Group lifted their target price on Darden Restaurants from $210.00 to $225.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Friday, March 21st. TD Securities upped their price target on Darden Restaurants from $180.00 to $190.00 and gave the stock a "hold" rating in a research note on Friday, March 21st. BMO Capital Markets lifted their price objective on shares of Darden Restaurants from $175.00 to $190.00 and gave the company a "market perform" rating in a research report on Friday, March 21st. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus upped their target price on shares of Darden Restaurants from $205.00 to $215.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Friday, March 21st. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have issued a hold rating and seventeen have issued a buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $201.38.

Insider Transactions at Darden Restaurants

In related news, SVP Douglas J. Milanes sold 7,892 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, January 30th. The shares were sold at an average price of $195.95, for a total value of $1,546,437.40. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president now owns 3,914 shares of the company's stock, valued at $766,948.30. The trade was a 66.85 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Also, SVP John W. Madonna sold 1,806 shares of the stock in a transaction on Monday, March 24th. The shares were sold at an average price of $207.88, for a total value of $375,431.28. Following the sale, the senior vice president now directly owns 7,192 shares in the company, valued at $1,495,072.96. This trade represents a 20.07 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last quarter, insiders sold 32,505 shares of company stock valued at $6,667,929. Company insiders own 0.58% of the company's stock.

About Darden Restaurants

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.

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