Darden Restaurants (NYSE:DRI) Stock Price Down 4.6% - Time to Sell?

Darden Restaurants, Inc. (NYSE:DRI - Get Free Report)'s stock price traded down 4.6% during mid-day trading on Monday . The stock traded as low as $214.81 and last traded at $215.41. 334,128 shares changed hands during mid-day trading, a decline of 75% from the average session volume of 1,322,953 shares. The stock had previously closed at $225.78.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research analysts recently issued reports on the stock. Wedbush increased their price target on shares of Darden Restaurants from $220.00 to $235.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research report on Friday, March 21st. Wall Street Zen raised shares of Darden Restaurants from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research report on Saturday, May 24th. Stifel Nicolaus increased their price target on shares of Darden Restaurants from $205.00 to $215.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Friday, March 21st. BMO Capital Markets increased their price target on shares of Darden Restaurants from $190.00 to $215.00 and gave the stock a "market perform" rating in a research report on Wednesday. Finally, Evercore ISI upped their price objective on shares of Darden Restaurants from $230.00 to $250.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research note on Monday, June 16th. Nine equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seventeen have issued a buy rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $224.60.

Darden Restaurants Trading Down 0.5%

The company has a quick ratio of 0.28, a current ratio of 0.42 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.92. The firm has a market cap of $25.31 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 24.35, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.10 and a beta of 0.75. The business's fifty day moving average is $209.92 and its two-hundred day moving average is $197.31.

Darden Restaurants (NYSE:DRI - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Friday, June 20th. The restaurant operator reported $2.98 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $2.97 by $0.01. Darden Restaurants had a net margin of 8.69% and a return on equity of 51.81%. The firm had revenue of $3.27 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $3.25 billion. During the same period last year, the firm earned $2.65 earnings per share. The business's revenue for the quarter was up 10.6% on a year-over-year basis. Equities analysts anticipate that Darden Restaurants, Inc. will post 9.52 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Darden Restaurants Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, August 1st. Shareholders of record on Thursday, July 10th will be paid a $1.50 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, July 10th. 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 2.77%. Darden Restaurants's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 63.06%.

Darden Restaurants declared that its Board of Directors has initiated a share repurchase plan on Friday, June 20th that allows the company to repurchase $1.00 billion in outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization allows the restaurant operator to purchase up to 3.8% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares repurchase plans are usually an indication that the company's board believes its shares are undervalued.

Insider Buying and Selling at Darden Restaurants

In other news, CFO Rajesh Vennam sold 5,780 shares of Darden Restaurants stock in a transaction on Tuesday, June 24th. The shares were sold at an average price of $222.22, for a total transaction of $1,284,431.60. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer now directly owns 4,555 shares of the company's stock, valued at $1,012,212.10. This trade represents a 55.93% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, SVP Susan M. Connelly sold 4,735 shares of Darden Restaurants stock in a transaction on Tuesday, June 24th. The stock was sold at an average price of $223.78, for a total transaction of $1,059,598.30. Following the transaction, the senior vice president now directly owns 4,602 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,029,835.56. This represents a 50.71% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last ninety days, insiders have sold 22,463 shares of company stock valued at $4,997,442. 0.58% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Darden Restaurants

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in DRI. Raymond James Financial Inc. bought a new position in shares of Darden Restaurants during the fourth quarter worth $642,967,000. GAMMA Investing LLC boosted its position in shares of Darden Restaurants by 46,484.5% during the first quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 928,895 shares of the restaurant operator's stock worth $192,987,000 after purchasing an additional 926,901 shares in the last quarter. Nuveen LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Darden Restaurants during the first quarter worth $84,801,000. Norges Bank acquired a new stake in shares of Darden Restaurants during the fourth quarter worth $75,137,000. Finally, Junto Capital Management LP acquired a new stake in shares of Darden Restaurants during the fourth quarter worth $48,919,000. 93.64% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

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.