Prudential Financial Inc. Increases Holdings in Darden Restaurants, Inc. (NYSE:DRI)

Prudential Financial Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Darden Restaurants, Inc. (NYSE:DRI - Free Report) by 1.0% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 461,828 shares of the restaurant operator's stock after purchasing an additional 4,517 shares during the quarter. Prudential Financial Inc. owned approximately 0.39% of Darden Restaurants worth $86,219,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Impact Investors Inc bought a new stake in shares of Darden Restaurants during the 4th quarter worth about $405,000. Comprehensive Financial Consultants Institutional Inc. lifted its position in Darden Restaurants by 10.8% during the fourth quarter. Comprehensive Financial Consultants Institutional Inc. now owns 14,912 shares of the restaurant operator's stock worth $2,784,000 after acquiring an additional 1,451 shares during the last quarter. US Bancorp DE boosted its holdings in shares of Darden Restaurants by 3.2% during the fourth quarter. US Bancorp DE now owns 146,460 shares of the restaurant operator's stock worth $27,343,000 after acquiring an additional 4,543 shares during the period. QV Investors Inc. grew its position in shares of Darden Restaurants by 4.3% in the fourth quarter. QV Investors Inc. now owns 87,702 shares of the restaurant operator's stock valued at $16,373,000 after purchasing an additional 3,580 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Fjarde AP Fonden Fourth Swedish National Pension Fund increased its stake in shares of Darden Restaurants by 14.7% during the fourth quarter. Fjarde AP Fonden Fourth Swedish National Pension Fund now owns 32,853 shares of the restaurant operator's stock worth $6,133,000 after purchasing an additional 4,200 shares during the period. 93.64% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

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Insider Buying and Selling

In other Darden Restaurants news, insider Laura B. Williamson sold 2,289 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, March 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $207.26, for a total value of $474,418.14. Following the sale, the insider now owns 10,056 shares of the company's stock, valued at $2,084,206.56. This trade represents a 18.54 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, SVP Susan M. Connelly sold 9,264 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Monday, January 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $184.68, for a total value of $1,710,875.52. Following the transaction, the senior vice president now directly owns 4,567 shares of the company's stock, valued at $843,433.56. The trade was a 66.98 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last 90 days, insiders have sold 70,311 shares of company stock valued at $13,658,221. Company insiders own 0.58% of the company's stock.

Darden Restaurants Stock Performance

Shares of DRI stock traded down $3.10 during trading on Friday, reaching $204.89. 798,208 shares of the company's stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 1,275,775. Darden Restaurants, Inc. has a 1 year low of $135.87 and a 1 year high of $211.00. The company has a market capitalization of $24.00 billion, a P/E ratio of 23.47, a PEG ratio of 2.15 and a beta of 1.27. The company has a current ratio of 0.37, a quick ratio of 0.23 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.02. The firm's 50-day moving average is $194.62 and its 200 day moving average is $178.47.

Darden Restaurants (NYSE:DRI - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, March 20th. The restaurant operator reported $2.80 EPS for the quarter, hitting analysts' consensus estimates of $2.80. The firm had revenue of $3.16 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.22 billion. Darden Restaurants had a return on equity of 50.12% and a net margin of 9.01%. The business's revenue for the quarter was up 6.2% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the company earned $2.60 earnings per share. Equities research analysts expect that Darden Restaurants, Inc. will post 9.52 EPS for the current year.

Darden Restaurants Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, May 1st. Stockholders of record on Thursday, April 10th will be given a $1.40 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, April 10th. This represents a $5.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.73%. Darden Restaurants's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 63.13%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research firms have recently weighed in on DRI. Bank of America lifted their price target on shares of Darden Restaurants from $230.00 to $238.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Friday, March 21st. Wedbush upped their price target on Darden Restaurants from $220.00 to $235.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research report on Friday, March 21st. Stephens lifted their target price on Darden Restaurants from $175.00 to $178.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a report on Friday, March 21st. Wells Fargo & Company raised their price target on shares of Darden Restaurants from $180.00 to $200.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a report on Friday, March 21st. Finally, UBS Group boosted their price objective on Darden Restaurants from $210.00 to $225.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Friday, March 21st. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have assigned a hold rating and seventeen have assigned a buy rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $202.08.

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.