Darden Restaurants, Inc. (NYSE:DRI) CEO Sells $4,271,642.42 in Stock

Darden Restaurants, Inc. (NYSE:DRI - Get Free Report) CEO Ricardo Cardenas sold 20,518 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on 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 completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 58,836 shares in the company, valued at $12,249,066.84. The trade was a 25.86 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink.

Darden Restaurants Stock Down 1.5 %

NYSE:DRI traded down $3.10 during trading hours on Friday, hitting $204.89. 798,208 shares of the company's stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 1,275,775. The stock's fifty day moving average price is $194.62 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $178.62. The firm has a market cap of $24.00 billion, a P/E ratio of 23.47, a P/E/G 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. Darden Restaurants, Inc. has a twelve month low of $135.87 and a twelve month high of $211.00.

Darden Restaurants (NYSE:DRI - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, March 20th. The restaurant operator reported $2.80 earnings per share for the quarter, meeting analysts' consensus estimates 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%. The firm's quarterly revenue was up 6.2% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $2.60 EPS. On average, research analysts expect that Darden Restaurants, Inc. will post 9.52 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

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Darden Restaurants Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, May 1st. Shareholders of record on Thursday, April 10th will be paid a dividend of $1.40 per share. This represents a $5.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.73%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, April 10th. Darden Restaurants's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 63.13%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities research analysts recently weighed in on DRI shares. Robert W. Baird increased their target price on shares of Darden Restaurants from $192.00 to $210.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research report on Friday, March 21st. Bank of America increased 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. UBS Group raised their price objective on shares of Darden Restaurants from $210.00 to $225.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Friday, March 21st. Morgan Stanley upped their target price on Darden Restaurants from $209.00 to $217.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research report on Friday, March 21st. Finally, Sanford C. Bernstein upgraded Darden Restaurants from a "market perform" rating to an "outperform" rating and lifted their price target for the company from $180.00 to $215.00 in a research report on Wednesday, January 22nd. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have given a hold rating and seventeen have given a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Darden Restaurants has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $202.08.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Darden Restaurants

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of DRI. Kestra Investment Management LLC purchased a new position in Darden Restaurants in the fourth quarter valued at about $25,000. Compass Wealth Management LLC bought a new stake in shares of Darden Restaurants in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $28,000. TCTC Holdings LLC acquired a new position in Darden Restaurants in the fourth quarter worth approximately $28,000. MCF Advisors LLC raised its position in Darden Restaurants by 50.9% during the fourth quarter. MCF Advisors LLC now owns 175 shares of the restaurant operator's stock valued at $33,000 after acquiring an additional 59 shares in the last quarter. Finally, HHM Wealth Advisors LLC lifted its stake in Darden Restaurants by 103.2% in the fourth quarter. HHM Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 254 shares of the restaurant operator's stock valued at $47,000 after acquiring an additional 129 shares during the last quarter. 93.64% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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.