Darden Restaurants, Inc. (NYSE:DRI) Receives Consensus Rating of "Moderate Buy" from Brokerages

Darden Restaurants, Inc. (NYSE:DRI - Get Free Report) has received a consensus recommendation of "Moderate Buy" from the twenty-four analysts that are presently covering the company, MarketBeat Ratings reports. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, six have given a hold rating and seventeen have issued a buy rating on the company. The average 1 year price target among brokerages that have issued a report on the stock in the last year is $179.25.

Several research analysts recently weighed in on the company. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their target price on Darden Restaurants from $165.00 to $176.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research report on Friday, September 20th. Sanford C. Bernstein lowered Darden Restaurants from an "outperform" rating to a "market perform" rating and cut their target price for the stock from $190.00 to $180.00 in a research report on Friday, September 20th. Evercore ISI raised Darden Restaurants from an "in-line" rating to an "outperform" rating and increased their target price for the stock from $165.00 to $205.00 in a research report on Friday, September 20th. BMO Capital Markets increased their target price on Darden Restaurants from $165.00 to $175.00 and gave the stock a "market perform" rating in a research report on Friday, September 20th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group lowered Darden Restaurants from a "hold" rating to an "underperform" rating and cut their target price for the stock from $154.00 to $124.00 in a research report on Thursday, July 11th.

Darden Restaurants Trading Up 0.2 %

Shares of DRI stock traded up $0.32 during mid-day trading on Friday, hitting $164.59. 723,435 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,235,838. Darden Restaurants has a fifty-two week low of $135.87 and a fifty-two week high of $176.84. The stock has a 50-day simple moving average of $158.24 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $152.54. The company has a quick ratio of 0.22, a current ratio of 0.35 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.65. The stock has a market cap of $19.65 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 19.27, a PEG ratio of 1.83 and a beta of 1.30.

Darden Restaurants (NYSE:DRI - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, September 19th. The restaurant operator reported $1.75 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.83 by ($0.08). Darden Restaurants had a return on equity of 49.46% and a net margin of 9.11%. The business had revenue of $2.76 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.80 billion. During the same quarter last year, the business earned $1.78 EPS. Darden Restaurants's revenue for the quarter was up 1.0% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities analysts expect that Darden Restaurants will post 9.47 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Darden Restaurants Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, November 1st. Shareholders of record on Thursday, October 10th will be issued a $1.40 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, October 10th. This represents a $5.60 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.40%. This is a boost from Darden Restaurants's previous quarterly dividend of $1.29. Darden Restaurants's dividend payout ratio is currently 65.73%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Darden Restaurants

In other Darden Restaurants news, insider Melvin John Martin sold 3,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Friday, October 4th. The stock was sold at an average price of $163.30, for a total value of $489,900.00. Following the transaction, the insider now owns 12,601 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $2,057,743.30. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. In other Darden Restaurants news, insider Melvin John Martin sold 3,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Friday, October 4th. The stock was sold at an average price of $163.30, for a total value of $489,900.00. Following the transaction, the insider now owns 12,601 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $2,057,743.30. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, SVP Douglas J. Milanes sold 5,705 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Monday, September 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $172.04, for a total value of $981,488.20. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president now directly owns 3,834 shares in the company, valued at $659,601.36. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last 90 days, insiders have sold 77,706 shares of company stock valued at $12,813,038. Corporate insiders own 0.85% of the company's stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Darden Restaurants

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Russell Investments Group Ltd. grew its position in Darden Restaurants by 206.5% during the 1st quarter. Russell Investments Group Ltd. now owns 49,082 shares of the restaurant operator's stock worth $8,204,000 after purchasing an additional 33,066 shares in the last quarter. Rise Advisors LLC boosted its holdings in Darden Restaurants by 131.3% in the first quarter. Rise Advisors LLC now owns 155 shares of the restaurant operator's stock worth $26,000 after purchasing an additional 88 shares in the last quarter. Nomura Holdings Inc. bought a new stake in Darden Restaurants in the fourth quarter worth $838,000. BI Asset Management Fondsmaeglerselskab A S boosted its holdings in Darden Restaurants by 499.8% in the first quarter. BI Asset Management Fondsmaeglerselskab A S now owns 13,525 shares of the restaurant operator's stock worth $2,261,000 after purchasing an additional 11,270 shares in the last quarter. Finally, State Board of Administration of Florida Retirement System boosted its holdings in Darden Restaurants by 5.6% in the first quarter. State Board of Administration of Florida Retirement System now owns 136,364 shares of the restaurant operator's stock worth $21,158,000 after purchasing an additional 7,184 shares in the last quarter. 93.64% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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.