Portfolio Design Labs LLC Buys 7,204 Shares of Darden Restaurants, Inc. (NYSE:DRI)

Portfolio Design Labs LLC raised its position in shares of Darden Restaurants, Inc. (NYSE:DRI - Free Report) by 157.7% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 11,771 shares of the restaurant operator's stock after acquiring an additional 7,204 shares during the quarter. Portfolio Design Labs LLC's holdings in Darden Restaurants were worth $2,198,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other large investors have also recently bought and sold shares of DRI. Comprehensive Financial Consultants Institutional Inc. boosted its position in shares of Darden Restaurants by 10.8% during the 4th quarter. Comprehensive Financial Consultants Institutional Inc. now owns 14,912 shares of the restaurant operator's stock valued at $2,784,000 after purchasing an additional 1,451 shares in the last quarter. QV Investors Inc. grew its position in shares of Darden Restaurants by 4.3% during the 4th quarter. QV Investors Inc. now owns 87,702 shares of the restaurant operator's stock worth $16,373,000 after buying an additional 3,580 shares during the period. M&T Bank Corp grew its holdings in Darden Restaurants by 1.1% in the third quarter. M&T Bank Corp now owns 35,950 shares of the restaurant operator's stock worth $5,901,000 after purchasing an additional 380 shares during the period. Eagle Asset Management Inc. increased its position in Darden Restaurants by 21.9% in the 3rd quarter. Eagle Asset Management Inc. now owns 47,162 shares of the restaurant operator's stock valued at $7,944,000 after buying an additional 8,480 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Geode Capital Management LLC increased its holdings in shares of Darden Restaurants by 0.6% during the third quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 2,806,113 shares of the restaurant operator's stock valued at $459,216,000 after acquiring an additional 17,497 shares in the last quarter. 93.64% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Darden Restaurants Trading Up 0.3 %

Shares of NYSE DRI traded up $0.58 during mid-day trading on Wednesday, hitting $194.75. The stock had a trading volume of 797,998 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,070,314. The firm has a market cap of $22.81 billion, a P/E ratio of 22.31, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.21 and a beta of 1.31. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.02, a quick ratio of 0.23 and a current ratio of 0.37. The business has a 50 day moving average price of $183.81 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $168.25. Darden Restaurants, Inc. has a 1 year low of $135.87 and a 1 year high of $201.94.

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

Darden Restaurants Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, February 3rd. Stockholders of record on Friday, January 10th were paid a dividend of $1.40 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, January 10th. This represents a $5.60 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.88%. Darden Restaurants's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 64.15%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities research analysts recently commented on DRI shares. Citigroup lowered their price target on Darden Restaurants from $209.00 to $206.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, December 4th. Wedbush increased their price target on Darden Restaurants from $200.00 to $220.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research report on Friday, December 20th. Sanford C. Bernstein upgraded Darden Restaurants from a "market perform" rating to an "outperform" rating and upped their price objective for the company from $180.00 to $215.00 in a research note on Wednesday, January 22nd. Stephens lifted their target price on Darden Restaurants from $164.00 to $175.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a research note on Friday, December 20th. Finally, Oppenheimer increased their price target on shares of Darden Restaurants from $200.00 to $218.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research report on Tuesday, January 7th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have given a hold rating and seventeen have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $192.52.

Insider Activity at Darden Restaurants

In other news, SVP Douglas J. Milanes sold 7,892 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, January 30th. The stock was sold at an average price of $195.95, for a total value of $1,546,437.40. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president now owns 3,914 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $766,948.30. This represents a 66.85 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, CFO Rajesh Vennam sold 7,228 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, December 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $181.71, for a total value of $1,313,399.88. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer now 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 position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 52,926 shares of company stock worth $9,850,129 over the last quarter. 0.58% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

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.