Darden Restaurants (NYSE:DRI) Shares Down 4.6% - Should You Sell?

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

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several brokerages have recently issued reports on DRI. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their target price on shares of Darden Restaurants from $200.00 to $225.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a research report on Tuesday, June 17th. Morgan Stanley lifted their price objective on Darden Restaurants from $215.00 to $235.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a report on Wednesday, June 18th. Stifel Nicolaus increased their target price on Darden Restaurants from $205.00 to $215.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Friday, March 21st. Evercore ISI raised their target price on Darden Restaurants from $230.00 to $250.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research report on Monday, June 16th. Finally, Truist Financial lifted their price target on Darden Restaurants from $230.00 to $252.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Wednesday, June 18th. Nine research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eighteen have issued a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $219.27.

Darden Restaurants Price Performance

The stock's 50 day simple moving average is $208.77 and its 200-day simple moving average is $196.67. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.92, a current ratio of 0.42 and a quick ratio of 0.28. The company has a market capitalization of $25.90 billion, a PE ratio of 24.92, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.27 and a beta of 0.75.

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

Darden Restaurants Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, August 1st. Stockholders of record on Thursday, July 10th will be issued a $1.50 dividend. This represents a $6.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.71%. This is a positive change from Darden Restaurants's previous quarterly dividend of $1.40. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, July 10th. Darden Restaurants's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 63.06%.

Darden Restaurants declared that its board has approved a stock 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 buy up to 3.8% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares repurchase plans are typically a sign that the company's board of directors believes its stock is undervalued.

Insider Activity at Darden Restaurants

In other Darden Restaurants news, insider Laura B. Williamson sold 2,289 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, March 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $207.26, for a total value of $474,418.14. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now owns 10,056 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,084,206.56. The trade was a 18.54% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. 0.58% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Trading of Darden Restaurants

Large investors have recently bought and sold shares of the business. Kestra Investment Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of Darden Restaurants in the 4th quarter valued at about $25,000. Grove Bank & Trust increased its holdings in Darden Restaurants by 171.4% in the first quarter. Grove Bank & Trust now owns 133 shares of the restaurant operator's stock valued at $28,000 after buying an additional 84 shares in the last quarter. ORG Partners LLC lifted its position in shares of Darden Restaurants by 108.8% during the 1st quarter. ORG Partners LLC now owns 142 shares of the restaurant operator's stock valued at $30,000 after acquiring an additional 74 shares during the period. Centennial Bank AR acquired a new stake in shares of Darden Restaurants during the 1st quarter valued at approximately $31,000. Finally, TCTC Holdings LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Darden Restaurants during the 4th quarter worth approximately $28,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 93.64% of the company's stock.

Darden Restaurants Company Profile

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.