Commerce Bank Sells 3,575 Shares of Darden Restaurants, Inc. (NYSE:DRI)

Commerce Bank trimmed its position in Darden Restaurants, Inc. (NYSE:DRI - Free Report) by 5.7% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 59,604 shares of the restaurant operator's stock after selling 3,575 shares during the quarter. Commerce Bank owned 0.05% of Darden Restaurants worth $11,127,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of DRI. Kestra Investment Management LLC bought a new stake 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 shares of Darden Restaurants in the 4th quarter worth approximately $28,000. MCF Advisors LLC boosted its stake in Darden Restaurants by 50.9% in the 4th quarter. MCF Advisors LLC now owns 175 shares of the restaurant operator's stock valued at $33,000 after buying an additional 59 shares in the last quarter. Finally, HHM Wealth Advisors LLC grew its position 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 period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 93.64% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research firms have recently weighed in on DRI. Bank of America upped their target price on shares of Darden Restaurants from $230.00 to $238.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Friday, March 21st. Barclays boosted their target price on Darden Restaurants from $230.00 to $235.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a report on Friday, March 21st. Raymond James boosted their price objective on Darden Restaurants from $200.00 to $210.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research note on Tuesday, January 28th. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their price target on Darden Restaurants from $180.00 to $200.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a report on Friday, March 21st. Finally, Truist Financial upped their target price on shares of Darden Restaurants from $200.00 to $212.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Monday, March 17th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have given a hold rating and seventeen have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $201.38.

Darden Restaurants Trading Down 1.7 %

DRI stock traded down $3.42 during midday trading on Thursday, hitting $198.36. 341,833 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,283,597. Darden Restaurants, Inc. has a one year low of $135.87 and a one year high of $211.00. The stock's fifty day moving average price is $196.53 and its 200-day moving average price is $182.88. The company has a market cap of $23.21 billion, a PE ratio of 22.72, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.15 and a beta of 0.93. 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 (NYSE:DRI - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, March 20th. The restaurant operator reported $2.80 earnings per share for the quarter, meeting the consensus estimate of $2.80. Darden Restaurants had a return on equity of 50.12% and a net margin of 9.01%. The business had revenue of $3.16 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $3.22 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business posted $2.60 EPS. Darden Restaurants's revenue for the quarter was up 6.2% on a year-over-year basis. Research analysts predict that Darden Restaurants, Inc. will post 9.52 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Darden Restaurants Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, May 1st. Investors of record on Thursday, April 10th will be paid a $1.40 dividend. This represents a $5.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.82%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, April 10th. Darden Restaurants's payout ratio is presently 63.13%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, insider Laura B. Williamson sold 2,289 shares of the stock in a transaction on Wednesday, March 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $207.26, for a total transaction of $474,418.14. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now owns 10,056 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,084,206.56. This represents a 18.54 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, CEO Ricardo Cardenas sold 20,518 shares of Darden Restaurants stock in a transaction 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 ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last 90 days, insiders sold 32,505 shares of company stock worth $6,667,929. Corporate insiders own 0.58% of the company's stock.

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.