Marshall Wace LLP Makes New $8.39 Million Investment in Darden Restaurants, Inc. (NYSE:DRI)

Marshall Wace LLP acquired a new position in shares of Darden Restaurants, Inc. (NYSE:DRI - Free Report) in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor acquired 44,960 shares of the restaurant operator's stock, valued at approximately $8,394,000.

A number of other hedge funds have also recently made changes to their positions in DRI. Impact Investors Inc purchased a new stake in Darden Restaurants in the fourth quarter valued at about $405,000. Comprehensive Financial Consultants Institutional Inc. raised its stake in Darden Restaurants by 10.8% in the fourth quarter. Comprehensive Financial Consultants Institutional Inc. now owns 14,912 shares of the restaurant operator's stock valued at $2,784,000 after buying an additional 1,451 shares during the last quarter. Envestnet Asset Management Inc. raised its stake in Darden Restaurants by 3.8% in the fourth quarter. Envestnet Asset Management Inc. now owns 358,891 shares of the restaurant operator's stock valued at $67,001,000 after buying an additional 13,074 shares during the last quarter. US Bancorp DE raised its stake in Darden Restaurants by 3.2% in the fourth quarter. US Bancorp DE now owns 146,460 shares of the restaurant operator's stock valued at $27,343,000 after buying an additional 4,543 shares during the last quarter. Finally, QV Investors Inc. raised its stake in 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 buying an additional 3,580 shares during the last quarter. 93.64% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Darden Restaurants Price Performance

DRI traded up $1.37 during midday trading on Monday, hitting $200.47. 979,387 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 1,284,569. 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 business has a 50 day simple moving average of $196.76 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $184.10. Darden Restaurants, Inc. has a 52-week low of $135.87 and a 52-week high of $211.00. The company has a market capitalization of $23.46 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 22.96, a PEG ratio of 2.15 and a beta of 0.93.

Darden Restaurants (NYSE:DRI - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, March 20th. The restaurant operator reported $2.80 earnings per share for the quarter, hitting analysts' consensus estimates of $2.80. Darden Restaurants had a net margin of 9.01% and a return on equity of 50.12%. The business had revenue of $3.16 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $3.22 billion. During the same period last year, the company posted $2.60 EPS. The company's revenue was up 6.2% on a year-over-year basis. On average, equities analysts forecast that Darden Restaurants, Inc. will post 9.52 earnings per share for the current fiscal 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 issued a dividend of $1.40 per share. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, April 10th. This represents a $5.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.79%. Darden Restaurants's payout ratio is 63.13%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, SVP John W. Madonna sold 1,806 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Monday, March 24th. The stock was sold at an average price of $207.88, for a total value of $375,431.28. Following the completion of the sale, the senior vice president now owns 7,192 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,495,072.96. This trade represents a 20.07 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Also, SVP Douglas J. Milanes sold 7,892 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, January 30th. The shares were sold at an average price of $195.95, for a total value of $1,546,437.40. Following the sale, the senior vice president now owns 3,914 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $766,948.30. This trade represents a 66.85 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last ninety days, insiders have sold 32,505 shares of company stock valued at $6,667,929. 0.58% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities research analysts have commented on the company. Stephens increased their price target on Darden Restaurants from $175.00 to $178.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a research note on Friday, March 21st. Stifel Nicolaus raised their price objective on Darden Restaurants from $205.00 to $215.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Friday, March 21st. 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, March 21st. Guggenheim raised their price objective on Darden Restaurants from $205.00 to $220.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Monday, March 24th. Finally, Robert W. Baird reduced their price objective on Darden Restaurants from $210.00 to $192.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a research note on Monday, April 7th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have issued a hold rating and seventeen have given a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $201.38.

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.