Congress Asset Management Co. Has $2.76 Million Stake in Darden Restaurants, Inc. (NYSE:DRI)

Congress Asset Management Co. lessened its stake in Darden Restaurants, Inc. (NYSE:DRI - Free Report) by 12.2% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 14,768 shares of the restaurant operator's stock after selling 2,057 shares during the quarter. Congress Asset Management Co.'s holdings in Darden Restaurants were worth $2,757,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of DRI. Blue Trust Inc. raised its stake in Darden Restaurants by 263.2% in the third quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 7,453 shares of the restaurant operator's stock valued at $1,128,000 after purchasing an additional 5,401 shares in the last quarter. AA Financial Advisors LLC acquired a new position in Darden Restaurants in the third quarter valued at about $215,000. Plimoth Trust Co. LLC grew its position in Darden Restaurants by 8.9% in the third quarter. Plimoth Trust Co. LLC now owns 12,056 shares of the restaurant operator's stock valued at $1,979,000 after acquiring an additional 988 shares during the last quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC grew its position in Darden Restaurants by 16,996.9% in the third quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC now owns 377,500 shares of the restaurant operator's stock valued at $61,959,000 after acquiring an additional 375,292 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Impact Partnership Wealth LLC grew its position in Darden Restaurants by 29.5% in the third quarter. Impact Partnership Wealth LLC now owns 4,048 shares of the restaurant operator's stock valued at $664,000 after acquiring an additional 923 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 93.64% of the company's stock.

Darden Restaurants Trading Down 2.0 %

Shares of Darden Restaurants stock traded down $3.98 during midday trading on Friday, reaching $191.12. The company had a trading volume of 1,385,016 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,118,371. The stock has a fifty day moving average price of $187.90 and a 200 day moving average price of $170.64. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.02, a current ratio of 0.37 and a quick ratio of 0.23. The firm has a market cap of $22.39 billion, a PE ratio of 21.89, a P/E/G ratio of 2.17 and a beta of 1.31. Darden Restaurants, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $135.87 and a fifty-two week high of $201.94.

Darden Restaurants (NYSE:DRI - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, December 19th. The restaurant operator reported $2.03 EPS for the quarter, hitting analysts' consensus estimates of $2.03. Darden Restaurants had a return on equity of 50.12% and a net margin of 9.01%. The company had revenue of $2.89 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.87 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned $1.84 earnings per share. The firm's quarterly revenue was up 6.0% on a year-over-year basis. On average, equities analysts anticipate that Darden Restaurants, Inc. will post 9.52 earnings per share for the current year.

Darden Restaurants Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, February 3rd. Shareholders of record on Friday, January 10th were paid a $1.40 dividend. This represents a $5.60 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.93%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, January 10th. Darden Restaurants's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 64.15%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Darden Restaurants

In other Darden Restaurants news, CFO Rajesh Vennam sold 7,228 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, December 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $181.71, for a total value of $1,313,399.88. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer now directly owns 10,262 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $1,864,708.02. The trade was a 41.33 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, SVP Susan M. Connelly sold 9,264 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, January 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $184.68, for a total value of $1,710,875.52. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president now directly owns 4,567 shares in the company, valued at approximately $843,433.56. This trade represents a 66.98 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last three months, insiders have sold 52,926 shares of company stock valued at $9,850,129. 0.58% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research firms have issued reports on DRI. Oppenheimer lifted their target price on Darden Restaurants from $200.00 to $218.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research report on Tuesday, January 7th. Stifel Nicolaus lifted their target price on Darden Restaurants from $190.00 to $205.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Friday, December 20th. The Goldman Sachs Group began coverage on Darden Restaurants in a research report on Thursday, December 5th. They issued a "neutral" rating and a $183.00 target price on the stock. Citigroup decreased their target price on Darden Restaurants from $209.00 to $206.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, December 4th. Finally, Morgan Stanley lifted their target price on Darden Restaurants from $193.00 to $209.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research report on Monday, December 23rd. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have given a hold rating and seventeen have issued a buy rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $192.52.

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.