Analysts Set Darden Restaurants, Inc. (NYSE:DRI) Target Price at $201.38

Shares of Darden Restaurants, Inc. (NYSE:DRI - Get Free Report) have been assigned an average rating of "Moderate Buy" from the twenty-six research firms that are covering the firm, MarketBeat.com reports. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell recommendation, eight have issued a hold recommendation and seventeen have issued a buy recommendation on the company. The average 1 year price target among analysts that have issued a report on the stock in the last year is $201.38.

Several research firms recently commented on DRI. Morgan Stanley upped their price objective on Darden Restaurants from $209.00 to $217.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research note on Friday, March 21st. Bank of America upped their price objective on shares of Darden Restaurants from $230.00 to $238.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Friday, March 21st. Truist Financial upped their price target on shares of Darden Restaurants from $200.00 to $212.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Monday, March 17th. Raymond James upped their price target on Darden Restaurants from $200.00 to $210.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research report on Tuesday, January 28th. Finally, Stephens upped their target price 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.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, SVP Matthew R. Broad sold 12,759 shares of the stock in a transaction on Tuesday, January 21st. The stock was sold at an average price of $187.37, for a total value of $2,390,653.83. Following the sale, the senior vice president now directly owns 14,328 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $2,684,637.36. This represents a 47.10 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, CEO Ricardo Cardenas sold 20,518 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Monday, March 24th. The shares were sold at an average price of $208.19, for a total transaction of $4,271,642.42. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 58,836 shares in the company, valued at $12,249,066.84. This trade represents a 25.86 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last quarter, insiders have sold 45,264 shares of company stock worth $9,058,583. Company insiders own 0.58% of the company's stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Darden Restaurants

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in DRI. Kestra Investment Management LLC bought a new position in shares of Darden Restaurants during the fourth quarter valued at $25,000. Grove Bank & Trust lifted its stake in Darden Restaurants by 171.4% during the 1st quarter. Grove Bank & Trust now owns 133 shares of the restaurant operator's stock valued at $28,000 after acquiring an additional 84 shares during the period. Compass Wealth Management LLC bought a new position in Darden Restaurants during the 4th quarter valued at about $28,000. TCTC Holdings LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Darden Restaurants during the 4th quarter valued at about $28,000. Finally, MCF Advisors LLC grew its stake in shares of Darden Restaurants by 50.9% in the fourth quarter. MCF Advisors LLC now owns 175 shares of the restaurant operator's stock worth $33,000 after acquiring an additional 59 shares during the period. 93.64% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Darden Restaurants Stock Up 1.1 %

Darden Restaurants stock traded up $2.16 during trading on Friday, hitting $200.03. 925,595 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,287,606. The company has a market capitalization of $23.41 billion, a P/E ratio of 22.91, a PEG ratio of 2.15 and a beta of 0.93. The business's 50 day moving average is $196.08 and its 200 day moving average is $182.10. Darden Restaurants has a 52 week low of $135.87 and a 52 week high of $211.00. The company has a current ratio of 0.37, a quick ratio of 0.23 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.02.

Darden Restaurants (NYSE:DRI - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, March 20th. The restaurant operator reported $2.80 EPS for the quarter, meeting the consensus estimate of $2.80. Darden Restaurants had a net margin of 9.01% and a return on equity of 50.12%. The company had revenue of $3.16 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $3.22 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company posted $2.60 earnings per share. The firm's revenue for the quarter was up 6.2% on a year-over-year basis. Analysts predict that Darden Restaurants will post 9.52 earnings per share for the current year.

Darden Restaurants Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, May 1st. Shareholders of record on Thursday, April 10th will be issued a $1.40 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, April 10th. This represents a $5.60 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.80%. Darden Restaurants's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 63.13%.

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.