Darden Restaurants, Inc. (NYSE:DRI) Shares Purchased by Nordea Investment Management AB

Nordea Investment Management AB lifted its stake in shares of Darden Restaurants, Inc. (NYSE:DRI - Free Report) by 4.3% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 85,390 shares of the restaurant operator's stock after purchasing an additional 3,521 shares during the period. Nordea Investment Management AB owned 0.07% of Darden Restaurants worth $15,991,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other large investors have also made changes to their positions in DRI. Farther Finance Advisors LLC increased its holdings in shares of Darden Restaurants by 9.8% in the third quarter. Farther Finance Advisors LLC now owns 697 shares of the restaurant operator's stock valued at $114,000 after purchasing an additional 62 shares during the period. Rosenberg Matthew Hamilton grew its position in Darden Restaurants by 11.4% in the 3rd quarter. Rosenberg Matthew Hamilton now owns 676 shares of the restaurant operator's stock valued at $111,000 after buying an additional 69 shares during the last quarter. Metis Global Partners LLC raised its position in Darden Restaurants by 1.9% during the 3rd quarter. Metis Global Partners LLC now owns 3,833 shares of the restaurant operator's stock worth $629,000 after buying an additional 73 shares during the last quarter. EP Wealth Advisors LLC lifted its stake in shares of Darden Restaurants by 5.6% in the 2nd quarter. EP Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 1,418 shares of the restaurant operator's stock worth $215,000 after acquiring an additional 75 shares during the period. Finally, 1620 Investment Advisors Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of Darden Restaurants by 4.4% in the third quarter. 1620 Investment Advisors Inc. now owns 1,835 shares of the restaurant operator's stock valued at $301,000 after acquiring an additional 78 shares in the last quarter. 93.64% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Transactions at Darden Restaurants

In other news, SVP Susan M. Connelly sold 9,264 shares of Darden Restaurants stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, January 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $184.68, for a total transaction of $1,710,875.52. Following the sale, the senior vice president now owns 4,567 shares in the company, valued at $843,433.56. This trade represents a 66.98 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, CFO Rajesh Vennam sold 7,228 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Monday, December 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $181.71, for a total transaction of $1,313,399.88. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer now owns 10,262 shares of the company's stock, valued at $1,864,708.02. This trade represents a 41.33 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Company insiders own 0.58% of the company's stock.

Darden Restaurants Trading Down 0.3 %

Shares of NYSE DRI traded down $0.61 on Thursday, reaching $183.73. 1,122,140 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 1,188,088. The company has a 50 day moving average of $173.70 and a 200 day moving average of $160.74. The company has a current ratio of 0.35, a quick ratio of 0.22 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.65. Darden Restaurants, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $135.87 and a fifty-two week high of $189.18. The stock has a market capitalization of $21.59 billion, a PE ratio of 21.19, a P/E/G ratio of 1.90 and a beta of 1.31.

Darden Restaurants (NYSE:DRI - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, December 19th. The restaurant operator reported $2.03 earnings per share for the quarter, hitting analysts' consensus estimates of $2.03. Darden Restaurants had a net margin of 9.11% and a return on equity of 49.46%. The company had revenue of $2.89 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.87 billion. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $1.84 earnings per share. Darden Restaurants's revenue was up 6.0% on a year-over-year basis. On average, equities research analysts forecast that Darden Restaurants, Inc. will post 9.47 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Darden Restaurants Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, February 3rd. Stockholders of record on Friday, January 10th will be paid a $1.40 dividend. This represents a $5.60 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.05%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, January 10th. Darden Restaurants's dividend payout ratio is currently 64.15%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

DRI has been the subject of several analyst reports. Morgan Stanley increased their price target on shares of Darden Restaurants from $193.00 to $209.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a report on Monday, December 23rd. BMO Capital Markets raised their price target on Darden Restaurants from $165.00 to $175.00 and gave the company a "market perform" rating in a report on Friday, December 20th. TD Cowen reiterated a "hold" rating and issued a $150.00 price objective on shares of Darden Restaurants in a research report on Thursday, September 19th. UBS Group boosted their target price on shares of Darden Restaurants from $195.00 to $210.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Friday, December 20th. Finally, Citigroup cut their price target on shares of Darden Restaurants from $209.00 to $206.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, December 4th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have assigned a hold rating and sixteen have issued a buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Darden Restaurants currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $189.12.

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.