Darden Restaurants (DRI) to Release Quarterly Earnings on Thursday

Key Points

• Darden Restaurants is set to release its Q1 2026 earnings report on September 18, 2025, with analysts expecting earnings of $1.99 per share and revenue of $3.0346 billion.
• The company recently increased its quarterly dividend to $1.50 per share, representing a 2.8% yield and reflecting an annualized payout of $6.00.
• The Board of Directors has authorized a $1 billion share repurchase program, indicating confidence in the stock's valuation.

Darden Restaurants (NYSE:DRI - Get Free Report) is projected to issue its Q1 2026 results before the market opens on Thursday, September 18th. Analysts expect the company to announce earnings of $1.99 per share and revenue of $3.0346 billion for the quarter. Darden Restaurants has set its FY 2026 guidance at 10.500-10.700 EPS.Parties can check the company's upcoming Q1 2026 earningsummary page for the latest details on the call scheduled for Thursday, September 18, 2025 at 8:30 AM ET.

Darden Restaurants (NYSE:DRI - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Friday, June 20th. The restaurant operator reported $2.98 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.97 by $0.01. The company had revenue of $3.27 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.25 billion. Darden Restaurants had a net margin of 8.69% and a return on equity of 51.81%. The firm's revenue for the quarter was up 10.6% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned $2.65 earnings per share. On average, analysts expect Darden Restaurants to post $10 EPS for the current fiscal year and $11 EPS for the next fiscal year.

Darden Restaurants Price Performance

DRI opened at $211.90 on Thursday. The firm has a market cap of $24.71 billion, a P/E ratio of 23.86, a PEG ratio of 1.95 and a beta of 0.71. The firm has a 50-day moving average of $207.92 and a 200 day moving average of $205.62. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.92, a quick ratio of 0.28 and a current ratio of 0.42. Darden Restaurants has a fifty-two week low of $153.98 and a fifty-two week high of $228.27.

Darden Restaurants Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, August 1st. Shareholders of record on Thursday, July 10th were given a dividend of $1.50 per share. This is a boost from Darden Restaurants's previous quarterly dividend of $1.40. This represents a $6.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.8%. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, July 10th. Darden Restaurants's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 67.57%.

Darden Restaurants declared that its Board of Directors has authorized a share repurchase program on Friday, June 20th that allows the company to buyback $1.00 billion in shares. This buyback authorization allows the restaurant operator to buy up to 3.8% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback programs are typically a sign that the company's leadership believes its shares are undervalued.

Insider Transactions at Darden Restaurants

In related news, SVP Susan M. Connelly sold 4,735 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, June 24th. The shares were sold at an average price of $223.78, for a total value of $1,059,598.30. Following the sale, the senior vice president directly owned 4,602 shares of the company's stock, valued at $1,029,835.56. This trade represents a 50.71% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, insider Laura B. Williamson sold 523 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, July 30th. The shares were sold at an average price of $204.65, for a total transaction of $107,031.95. Following the completion of the sale, the insider directly owned 5,423 shares in the company, valued at $1,109,816.95. This represents a 8.80% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last 90 days, insiders sold 45,727 shares of company stock valued at $10,022,232. Company insiders own 0.49% of the company's stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Darden Restaurants

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. MUFG Securities EMEA plc bought a new position in Darden Restaurants during the second quarter valued at approximately $75,000. Brown Advisory Inc. bought a new position in Darden Restaurants during the second quarter valued at approximately $200,000. Kestra Investment Management LLC grew its position in Darden Restaurants by 15.4% during the second quarter. Kestra Investment Management LLC now owns 1,091 shares of the restaurant operator's stock valued at $238,000 after acquiring an additional 146 shares during the last quarter. Glenview Trust co grew its position in Darden Restaurants by 4.9% during the second quarter. Glenview Trust co now owns 1,308 shares of the restaurant operator's stock valued at $285,000 after acquiring an additional 61 shares during the last quarter. Finally, 44 Wealth Management LLC grew its position in Darden Restaurants by 4.6% during the second quarter. 44 Wealth Management LLC now owns 1,467 shares of the restaurant operator's stock valued at $320,000 after acquiring an additional 64 shares during the last quarter. 93.64% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Ratings Changes

DRI has been the subject of a number of research reports. Robert W. Baird increased their target price on shares of Darden Restaurants from $218.00 to $230.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research report on Monday, June 23rd. Evercore ISI cut their target price on shares of Darden Restaurants from $250.00 to $245.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday. Barclays increased their target price on shares of Darden Restaurants from $235.00 to $255.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research report on Monday, June 23rd. Wells Fargo & Company increased their target price on shares of Darden Restaurants from $200.00 to $225.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a research report on Tuesday, June 17th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group upgraded shares of Darden Restaurants from an "underperform" rating to a "hold" rating and increased their target price for the stock from $165.00 to $210.00 in a research report on Friday, June 13th. Sixteen equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and eleven have issued a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $224.81.

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.

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