Darden Restaurants (NYSE:DRI) Receives "Equal Weight" Rating from Stephens

Darden Restaurants (NYSE:DRI - Get Free Report)'s stock had its "equal weight" rating reissued by research analysts at Stephens in a research report issued to clients and investors on Thursday,Benzinga reports. They presently have a $175.00 target price on the restaurant operator's stock. Stephens' price target indicates a potential downside of 7.99% from the stock's previous close.

A number of other equities research analysts have also recently weighed in on the stock. Barclays lifted their price target on shares of Darden Restaurants from $206.00 to $230.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research report on Tuesday, January 7th. Truist Financial boosted their target price on Darden Restaurants from $195.00 to $200.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Friday, December 20th. The Goldman Sachs Group initiated coverage on Darden Restaurants in a research report on Thursday, December 5th. They set a "neutral" rating and a $183.00 price target for the company. Oppenheimer boosted their price objective on Darden Restaurants from $200.00 to $218.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a report on Tuesday, January 7th. Finally, Citigroup lowered their target price on 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, seven have issued a hold rating and seventeen have issued a buy rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Darden Restaurants presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $192.52.

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Darden Restaurants Stock Up 0.4 %

Shares of NYSE DRI opened at $190.20 on Thursday. The company has a market capitalization of $22.28 billion, a P/E ratio of 21.79, 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 current ratio of 0.37 and a quick ratio of 0.23. The company has a 50 day simple moving average of $191.28 and a 200-day simple moving average of $175.13. Darden Restaurants has a 1 year low of $135.87 and a 1 year high of $203.12.

Darden Restaurants (NYSE:DRI - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, December 19th. The restaurant operator reported $2.03 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, hitting the consensus estimate of $2.03. The company had revenue of $2.89 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $2.87 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 6.0% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $1.84 earnings per share. On average, equities research analysts predict that Darden Restaurants will post 9.52 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Activity at Darden Restaurants

In related news, insider Todd Burrowes sold 15,783 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, January 14th. The stock was sold at an average price of $183.03, for a total transaction of $2,888,762.49. Following the transaction, the insider now owns 46,288 shares of the company's stock, valued at $8,472,092.64. This trade represents a 25.43 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, CFO Rajesh Vennam sold 7,228 shares of the 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 sale, the chief financial officer now directly owns 10,262 shares of the company's stock, valued at $1,864,708.02. The trade was a 41.33 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 52,926 shares of company stock valued at $9,850,129 in the last three months. 0.58% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Darden Restaurants

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

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.

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