UBS Group Forecasts Strong Price Appreciation for Darden Restaurants (NYSE:DRI) Stock

Darden Restaurants (NYSE:DRI - Free Report) had its price target boosted by UBS Group from $210.00 to $225.00 in a research report report published on Friday,Benzinga reports. They currently have a buy rating on the restaurant operator's stock.

DRI has been the topic of several other research reports. Raymond James raised their price target on shares of Darden Restaurants from $200.00 to $210.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a report on Tuesday, January 28th. The Goldman Sachs Group began coverage on shares of Darden Restaurants in a research report on Thursday, December 5th. They set a "neutral" rating and a $183.00 price target on the stock. Morgan Stanley increased their target price on Darden Restaurants from $209.00 to $217.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a report on Friday. Stephens boosted their price target on Darden Restaurants from $175.00 to $178.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a report on Friday. Finally, Oppenheimer raised their price objective on Darden Restaurants from $218.00 to $230.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research note on Friday. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have given a hold rating and seventeen have given a buy rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $202.08.

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Darden Restaurants Price Performance

Shares of DRI traded down $1.13 during trading hours on Friday, reaching $207.43. 1,226,670 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 1,243,391. Darden Restaurants has a fifty-two week low of $135.87 and a fifty-two week high of $210.47. The stock has a fifty day simple moving average of $193.09 and a 200 day simple moving average of $177.56. The stock has a market capitalization of $24.30 billion, a PE ratio of 23.76, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.15 and a beta of 1.27. The company has a quick ratio of 0.23, a current ratio of 0.37 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.02.

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

Darden Restaurants Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, May 1st. Stockholders of record on Thursday, April 10th will be paid a $1.40 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, April 10th. This represents a $5.60 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.70%. Darden Restaurants's payout ratio is 63.13%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, SVP Matthew R. Broad sold 12,759 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated 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 completion of the transaction, the senior vice president now owns 14,328 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,684,637.36. This trade represents a 47.10 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, insider Todd Burrowes sold 15,783 shares of Darden Restaurants stock in a transaction that occurred on 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 completion of the transaction, the insider now directly owns 46,288 shares in the company, valued at $8,472,092.64. This represents a 25.43 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 45,698 shares of company stock valued at $8,536,729 over the last 90 days. 0.58% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Institutional Trading of Darden Restaurants

A number of large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. B. Metzler seel. Sohn & Co. Holding AG acquired a new stake in shares of Darden Restaurants during the 3rd quarter valued at $682,000. Ontario Teachers Pension Plan Board purchased a new stake in shares of Darden Restaurants during the third quarter valued at $409,000. Intech Investment Management LLC boosted its position in shares of Darden Restaurants by 93.8% in the 3rd quarter. Intech Investment Management LLC now owns 11,890 shares of the restaurant operator's stock valued at $1,952,000 after purchasing an additional 5,756 shares during the period. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA increased its stake in Darden Restaurants by 111.0% in 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 in the last quarter. Finally, Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. raised its holdings in Darden Restaurants by 3.6% during the 3rd quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 3,580,322 shares of the restaurant operator's stock worth $587,638,000 after buying an additional 123,900 shares during the period. 93.64% of the stock is currently owned by 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.