Inlet Private Wealth LLC Makes New $240,000 Investment in Darden Restaurants, Inc. (NYSE:DRI)

Inlet Private Wealth LLC purchased a new position in Darden Restaurants, Inc. (NYSE:DRI - Free Report) in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor purchased 1,287 shares of the restaurant operator's stock, valued at approximately $240,000.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of the stock. Mizuho Securities USA LLC lifted its position in Darden Restaurants by 96,162.9% in the third quarter. Mizuho Securities USA LLC now owns 8,861,000 shares of the restaurant operator's stock worth $1,454,356,000 after buying an additional 8,851,795 shares during the last quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA grew its position in Darden Restaurants by 111.0% during the 3rd quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA now owns 1,469,083 shares of the restaurant operator's stock worth $241,121,000 after purchasing an additional 772,907 shares during the last quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Darden Restaurants by 16,996.9% during the third quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC now owns 377,500 shares of the restaurant operator's stock worth $61,959,000 after purchasing an additional 375,292 shares during the period. Healthcare of Ontario Pension Plan Trust Fund acquired a new stake in Darden Restaurants during the 3rd quarter worth about $40,048,000. Finally, Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. lifted its stake in shares of Darden Restaurants by 3.6% in the 3rd quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 3,580,322 shares of the restaurant operator's stock valued at $587,638,000 after purchasing an additional 123,900 shares during the period. 93.64% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Transactions at Darden Restaurants

In related news, SVP Matthew R. Broad sold 12,759 shares of Darden Restaurants stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, January 21st. The shares were sold at an average price of $187.37, for a total transaction of $2,390,653.83. Following the sale, the senior vice president now directly owns 14,328 shares in the company, valued at $2,684,637.36. This trade represents a 47.10 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, SVP Douglas J. Milanes sold 7,892 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Thursday, January 30th. The shares were sold at an average price of $195.95, for a total transaction of $1,546,437.40. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president now owns 3,914 shares in the company, valued at approximately $766,948.30. The trade was a 66.85 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 52,926 shares of company stock worth $9,850,129 in the last three months. Insiders own 0.58% of the company's stock.

Darden Restaurants Stock Performance

NYSE:DRI traded up $0.87 during trading hours on Wednesday, reaching $200.43. 334,765 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,096,599. Darden Restaurants, Inc. has a 52 week low of $135.87 and a 52 week high of $200.90. The company has a quick ratio of 0.23, a current ratio of 0.37 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.02. The stock has a market capitalization of $23.48 billion, a P/E ratio of 22.96, a P/E/G ratio of 2.15 and a beta of 1.31. The firm has a 50 day simple moving average of $181.45 and a 200-day simple moving average of $166.28.

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, meeting the consensus estimate of $2.03. The firm had revenue of $2.89 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.87 billion. Darden Restaurants had a return on equity of 50.12% and a net margin of 9.01%. Darden Restaurants's quarterly revenue was up 6.0% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned $1.84 earnings per share. As a group, sell-side analysts forecast that Darden Restaurants, Inc. will post 9.52 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Darden Restaurants Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, February 3rd. Shareholders of record on Friday, January 10th were issued a dividend of $1.40 per share. The ex-dividend date was Friday, January 10th. This represents a $5.60 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.79%. Darden Restaurants's dividend payout ratio is currently 64.15%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

DRI has been the topic of a number of recent research reports. Bank of America boosted their price target on shares of Darden Restaurants from $195.00 to $211.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Friday, December 20th. KeyCorp lifted their price objective on shares of Darden Restaurants from $194.00 to $200.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research report on Friday, December 20th. Oppenheimer boosted their price objective on shares of Darden Restaurants from $200.00 to $218.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research report on Tuesday, January 7th. Citigroup decreased their target price on shares of Darden Restaurants from $209.00 to $206.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, December 4th. Finally, Wedbush lifted their price target on Darden Restaurants from $200.00 to $220.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research note on Friday, December 20th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have given a hold rating and seventeen have given a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently 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.