Darden Restaurants, Inc. (NYSE:DRI) Given Consensus Rating of “Moderate Buy” by Brokerages

Darden Restaurants, Inc. (NYSE:DRI) has earned a consensus recommendation of “Moderate Buy” from the twenty-five ratings firms that are currently covering the stock, Marketbeat Ratings reports. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have given a hold rating and seventeen have issued a buy rating on the company. The average twelve-month price objective among brokerages that have updated their coverage on the stock in the last year is $192.52.

DRI has been the subject of a number of research reports. BMO Capital Markets raised their price target on shares of Darden Restaurants from $165.00 to $175.00 and gave the company a “market perform” rating in a report on Friday, December 20th. UBS Group boosted their target price on Darden Restaurants from $195.00 to $210.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, December 20th. Barclays raised their price target on Darden Restaurants from $206.00 to $230.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Tuesday, January 7th. Wedbush boosted their price objective on Darden Restaurants from $200.00 to $220.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Friday, December 20th. Finally, Bank of America raised their target price on shares of Darden Restaurants from $195.00 to $211.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, December 20th.

Darden Restaurants Price Performance

NYSE:DRI opened at $196.35 on Friday. The firm has a market cap of $23.00 billion, a PE ratio of 22.49, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.05 and a beta of 1.31. The company’s 50-day moving average price is $179.90 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $164.85. 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 has a 12 month low of $135.87 and a 12 month high of $196.65.

Darden Restaurants (NYSE:DRI) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, December 19th. The restaurant operator reported $2.03 EPS for the quarter, hitting the consensus estimate of $2.03. Darden Restaurants had a return on equity of 50.12% and a net margin of 9.01%. The business had revenue of $2.89 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.87 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $1.84 EPS. Darden Restaurants’s revenue was up 6.0% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities analysts anticipate that Darden Restaurants will post 9.52 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Darden Restaurants Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, February 3rd. Stockholders of record on Friday, January 10th will be issued a $1.40 dividend. This represents a $5.60 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.85%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, January 10th. Darden Restaurants’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 64.15%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Darden Restaurants news, SVP Matthew R. Broad sold 12,759 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, January 21st. The stock was sold at an average price of $187.37, for a total value of $2,390,653.83. Following the sale, the senior vice president now owns 14,328 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,684,637.36. The trade was a 47.10 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, CFO Rajesh Vennam sold 7,228 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, December 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $181.71, for a total value of $1,313,399.88. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer now directly owns 10,262 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,864,708.02. This trade represents a 41.33 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 45,034 shares of company stock worth $8,303,692 over the last ninety days. Company insiders own 0.58% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in DRI. Compass Wealth Management LLC bought a new stake in Darden Restaurants during the 4th quarter worth about $28,000. Kimelman & Baird LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Darden Restaurants in the second quarter valued at about $30,000. Wolff Wiese Magana LLC raised its holdings in Darden Restaurants by 1,690.9% during the third quarter. Wolff Wiese Magana LLC now owns 197 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock worth $32,000 after acquiring an additional 186 shares in the last quarter. MCF Advisors LLC boosted its position in Darden Restaurants by 50.9% during the fourth quarter. MCF Advisors LLC now owns 175 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock valued at $33,000 after purchasing an additional 59 shares during the last quarter. Finally, HHM Wealth Advisors LLC boosted its position in Darden Restaurants by 103.2% during the fourth quarter. HHM Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 254 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock valued at $47,000 after purchasing an additional 129 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 93.64% of the company’s stock.

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.