Darden Restaurants, Inc. (NYSE:DRI) Given Consensus Recommendation of "Moderate Buy" by Analysts

Key Points

• Analyst sentiment is positive: Darden Restaurants has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" from 27 analysts, with 17 buy ratings and 10 holds. The average 12-month price target is $229.32.
• Recent results topped expectations: The company reported $3.66 EPS for the quarter, edging past estimates, while revenue rose 13.7% year over year to $3.72 billion. Darden also issued FY 2027 EPS guidance of 11.10 to 11.35.
• Dividend was raised: Darden increased its quarterly dividend to $1.62 per share from $1.50, implying an annualized payout of $6.48 and a 3.2% yield. The dividend is payable on August 3 to shareholders of record on July 10.

Darden Restaurants, Inc. (NYSE:DRI - Get Free Report) has been given a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" by the twenty-seven analysts that are currently covering the stock, MarketBeat.com reports. Ten research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seventeen have given a buy rating to the company. The average 1 year price objective among brokerages that have covered the stock in the last year is $229.32.

DRI has been the subject of a number of analyst reports. Citigroup increased their price objective on Darden Restaurants from $238.00 to $245.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Monday, June 15th. Robert W. Baird lifted their target price on shares of Darden Restaurants from $210.00 to $220.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research note on Friday, June 26th. Sanford C. Bernstein reiterated an "outperform" rating on shares of Darden Restaurants in a report on Friday, March 13th. BTIG Research increased their price target on shares of Darden Restaurants from $225.00 to $235.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Friday, June 26th. Finally, Stephens raised their price target on shares of Darden Restaurants from $210.00 to $216.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a report on Friday, June 26th.

Insider Transactions at Darden Restaurants

In other Darden Restaurants news, SVP Lindsay L. Koren sold 300 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, April 7th. The stock was sold at an average price of $194.32, for a total transaction of $58,296.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president owned 1,617 shares of the company's stock, valued at $314,215.44. This represents a 15.65% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Also, SVP Douglas J. Milanes sold 3,620 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, April 17th. The stock was sold at an average price of $202.16, for a total value of $731,819.20. Following the completion of the sale, the senior vice president owned 274 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $55,391.84. This trade represents a 92.96% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Corporate insiders own 0.49% of the company's stock.

Institutional Trading of Darden Restaurants

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. First Trust Advisors LP raised its holdings in Darden Restaurants by 3.3% in the 2nd quarter. First Trust Advisors LP now owns 80,001 shares of the restaurant operator's stock worth $17,438,000 after purchasing an additional 2,553 shares in the last quarter. Brown Advisory Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Darden Restaurants during the 2nd quarter valued at about $200,000. Cresset Asset Management LLC increased its position in shares of Darden Restaurants by 3.2% during the second quarter. Cresset Asset Management LLC now owns 2,424 shares of the restaurant operator's stock valued at $529,000 after buying an additional 76 shares during the period. Cerity Partners LLC increased its position in shares of Darden Restaurants by 15.7% during the second quarter. Cerity Partners LLC now owns 19,045 shares of the restaurant operator's stock valued at $4,151,000 after buying an additional 2,581 shares during the period. Finally, Daiwa Securities Group Inc. increased its position in shares of Darden Restaurants by 5.9% during the second quarter. Daiwa Securities Group Inc. now owns 18,183 shares of the restaurant operator's stock valued at $3,964,000 after buying an additional 1,012 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 93.64% of the company's stock.

Darden Restaurants Stock Down 0.2%

DRI opened at $203.84 on Friday. Darden Restaurants has a 12 month low of $169.00 and a 12 month high of $220.85. The company has a current ratio of 0.31, a quick ratio of 0.21 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.74. The business's 50-day moving average price is $202.39 and its 200-day moving average price is $201.82. The company has a market cap of $23.35 billion, a P/E ratio of 19.64, a P/E/G ratio of 2.03 and a beta of 0.60.

Darden Restaurants (NYSE:DRI - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, June 25th. The restaurant operator reported $3.66 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $3.63 by $0.03. Darden Restaurants had a return on equity of 57.44% and a net margin of 9.13%.The company had revenue of $3.72 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $3.73 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $2.98 EPS. Darden Restaurants's quarterly revenue was up 13.7% compared to the same quarter last year. Darden Restaurants has set its FY 2027 guidance at 11.100-11.350 EPS. On average, equities analysts expect that Darden Restaurants will post 11.28 EPS for the current year.

Darden Restaurants Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, August 3rd. Stockholders of record on Friday, July 10th will be paid a dividend of $1.62 per share. This represents a $6.48 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.2%. This is a positive change from Darden Restaurants's previous quarterly dividend of $1.50. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, July 10th. Darden Restaurants's payout ratio is currently 57.80%.

About Darden Restaurants

Darden Restaurants, Inc is a multi-brand, full-service restaurant company headquartered in Orlando, Florida. The company owns and operates a portfolio of casual and fine-dining concepts that together serve millions of guests through company-owned and franchised locations. Its well-known brands include Olive Garden and LongHorn Steakhouse, alongside other dining concepts that span Italian, American, steakhouse and upscale casual formats.

Darden's restaurants provide a range of guest-facing services including dine-in, takeout, delivery and catering, and feature menus tailored to each brand's positioning—Italian-American fare at Olive Garden, steaks and grilled items at LongHorn, and more premium steakhouse and chef-driven offerings at its upscale concepts.

This instant news alert was generated by narrative science technology and financial data from MarketBeat in order to provide readers with the fastest reporting and unbiased coverage. Please send any questions or comments about this story to contact@marketbeat.com.