Darden Restaurants (NYSE:DRI) Hits New 1-Year High - Here's Why

Darden Restaurants, Inc. (NYSE:DRI - Get Free Report)'s share price hit a new 52-week high on Tuesday . The company traded as high as $213.14 and last traded at $213.11, with a volume of 662006 shares changing hands. The stock had previously closed at $204.02.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities analysts have recently commented on DRI shares. Citigroup raised their price objective on shares of Darden Restaurants from $223.00 to $229.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Friday, March 21st. Truist Financial raised their price objective on shares of Darden Restaurants from $200.00 to $212.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Monday, March 17th. KeyCorp raised their price objective on shares of Darden Restaurants from $200.00 to $220.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research report on Friday, March 21st. Barclays raised their price objective on shares of Darden Restaurants from $230.00 to $235.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research report on Friday, March 21st. Finally, Bank of America raised their price objective on shares of Darden Restaurants from $230.00 to $238.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Friday, March 21st. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have assigned a hold rating and eighteen have issued a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $201.38.

Darden Restaurants Stock Up 0.1%

The firm's 50 day moving average is $201.98 and its two-hundred day moving average is $190.48. The firm has a market cap of $25.03 billion, a P/E ratio of 24.50, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.15 and a beta of 0.74. The company has a current ratio of 0.37, a quick ratio of 0.23 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.02.

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

Darden Restaurants Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, May 1st. Shareholders of record on Thursday, April 10th were paid a $1.40 dividend. This represents a $5.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.62%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, April 10th. Darden Restaurants's payout ratio is currently 63.13%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Darden Restaurants

In other news, SVP John W. Madonna sold 1,806 shares of Darden Restaurants stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, March 24th. The shares were sold at an average price of $207.88, for a total value of $375,431.28. Following the sale, the senior vice president now directly owns 7,192 shares in the company, valued at $1,495,072.96. This trade represents a 20.07% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, insider Laura B. Williamson sold 2,289 shares of Darden Restaurants stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, March 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $207.26, for a total transaction of $474,418.14. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now owns 10,056 shares in the company, valued at $2,084,206.56. This trade represents a 18.54% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last quarter, insiders have sold 24,613 shares of company stock valued at $5,121,492. 0.58% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Darden Restaurants

Institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Kestra Investment Management LLC acquired a new position in Darden Restaurants during the fourth quarter worth $25,000. Grove Bank & Trust increased its holdings in Darden Restaurants by 171.4% during the first quarter. Grove Bank & Trust now owns 133 shares of the restaurant operator's stock worth $28,000 after buying an additional 84 shares during the last quarter. ORG Partners LLC increased its holdings in Darden Restaurants by 108.8% during the first quarter. ORG Partners LLC now owns 142 shares of the restaurant operator's stock worth $30,000 after buying an additional 74 shares during the last quarter. Centennial Bank AR acquired a new position in Darden Restaurants during the first quarter worth $31,000. Finally, TCTC Holdings LLC acquired a new position in Darden Restaurants during the fourth quarter worth $28,000. 93.64% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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.