Evercore ISI Forecasts Strong Price Appreciation for Darden Restaurants (NYSE:DRI) Stock

Darden Restaurants (NYSE:DRI - Free Report) had its price objective upped by Evercore ISI from $230.00 to $250.00 in a report published on Monday morning,Benzinga reports. The brokerage currently has an outperform rating on the restaurant operator's stock.

A number of other research firms have also weighed in on DRI. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their price objective 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. Morgan Stanley lifted their target price on shares of Darden Restaurants from $209.00 to $217.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research note on Friday, March 21st. BMO Capital Markets increased their price target on Darden Restaurants from $175.00 to $190.00 and gave the stock a "market perform" rating in a research note on Friday, March 21st. Stephens lifted their price objective on Darden Restaurants from $178.00 to $200.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a research report on Thursday, June 12th. Finally, Wall Street Zen upgraded Darden Restaurants from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research note on Saturday, May 24th. Nine analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eighteen have given a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $213.35.

Darden Restaurants Price Performance

Shares of NYSE DRI traded up $3.34 during midday trading on Monday, hitting $226.09. The company had a trading volume of 3,826,012 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,331,783. The firm has a market capitalization of $26.46 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 25.49, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.22 and a beta of 0.75. Darden Restaurants has a twelve month low of $135.87 and a twelve month high of $235.98. The business has a 50-day simple moving average of $208.33 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $195.96. The company has a quick ratio of 0.24, a current ratio of 0.39 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.96.

Darden Restaurants (NYSE:DRI - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Friday, June 20th. The restaurant operator reported $2.98 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.96 by $0.02. Darden Restaurants had a net margin of 8.96% and a return on equity of 50.68%. The firm had revenue of $3.27 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $3.25 billion. During the same period last year, the firm posted $2.65 EPS. The firm's revenue for the quarter was up 10.6% on a year-over-year basis. Equities research analysts anticipate that Darden Restaurants will post 9.52 earnings per share for the current year.

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

Darden Restaurants Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, August 1st. Shareholders of record on Thursday, July 10th will be given a dividend of $1.50 per share. This represents a $6.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.65%. This is a positive change from Darden Restaurants's previous quarterly dividend of $1.40. Darden Restaurants's payout ratio is 63.13%.

Insider Activity at Darden Restaurants

In other news, CEO Ricardo Cardenas sold 20,518 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Monday, March 24th. The stock was sold at an average price of $208.19, for a total value of $4,271,642.42. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 58,836 shares in the company, valued at $12,249,066.84. This represents a 25.86% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, SVP John W. Madonna sold 1,806 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Monday, March 24th. The shares were sold at an average price of $207.88, for a total value of $375,431.28. Following the transaction, the senior vice president now directly owns 7,192 shares of the company's stock, valued at $1,495,072.96. This represents a 20.07% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 24,613 shares of company stock worth $5,121,492 over the last ninety days. 0.58% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Darden Restaurants

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of DRI. Kestra Investment Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of Darden Restaurants in the 4th quarter worth approximately $25,000. Grove Bank & Trust grew its position in Darden Restaurants by 171.4% in 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 shares of Darden Restaurants by 108.8% in the first quarter. ORG Partners LLC now owns 142 shares of the restaurant operator's stock valued at $30,000 after buying an additional 74 shares in the last quarter. Centennial Bank AR acquired a new stake in shares of Darden Restaurants during the 1st quarter valued at $31,000. Finally, TCTC Holdings LLC bought a new stake in shares of Darden Restaurants during the 4th quarter worth $28,000. 93.64% of the stock is currently 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.