Beacon Investment Advisory Services Inc. Purchases 2,978 Shares of Darden Restaurants, Inc. $DRI

Key Points

• Beacon Investment Advisory Services Inc. increased its holdings in Darden Restaurants by 6.1%, purchasing an additional 2,978 shares, bringing its total to 51,674 shares valued at approximately $11.26 million.
• Darden Restaurants announced a new share repurchase program allowing the company to buy back $1.00 billion worth of stock, indicating management's belief that shares are undervalued.
• The company declared a quarterly dividend of $1.50 per share, with an annualized yield of 3.2%, set to be paid on November 3rd.

Beacon Investment Advisory Services Inc. increased its position in shares of Darden Restaurants, Inc. (NYSE:DRI - Free Report) by 6.1% during the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 51,674 shares of the restaurant operator's stock after purchasing an additional 2,978 shares during the period. Beacon Investment Advisory Services Inc.'s holdings in Darden Restaurants were worth $11,263,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of the company. Grove Bank & Trust raised its position in shares of Darden Restaurants by 171.4% during the 1st quarter. Grove Bank & Trust now owns 133 shares of the restaurant operator's stock valued at $28,000 after purchasing an additional 84 shares during the period. ORG Partners LLC raised 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 purchasing an additional 74 shares during the period. Centennial Bank AR bought a new stake in shares of Darden Restaurants during the 1st quarter valued at $31,000. Alpine Bank Wealth Management bought a new stake in shares of Darden Restaurants during the 1st quarter valued at $34,000. Finally, SouthState Corp purchased a new position in Darden Restaurants during the first quarter valued at $36,000. 93.64% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, insider Todd Burrowes sold 13,569 shares of Darden Restaurants stock in a transaction dated Monday, June 30th. The shares were sold at an average price of $216.45, for a total transaction of $2,937,010.05. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider directly owned 46,327 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $10,027,479.15. The trade was a 22.65% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, SVP Matthew R. Broad sold 6,949 shares of Darden Restaurants stock in a transaction dated Monday, June 30th. The stock was sold at an average price of $218.00, for a total transaction of $1,514,882.00. Following the transaction, the senior vice president directly owned 14,367 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $3,132,006. This represents a 32.60% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last ninety days, insiders sold 23,264 shares of company stock valued at $5,024,790. Company insiders own 0.49% of the company's stock.

Darden Restaurants Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE:DRI opened at $186.86 on Thursday. Darden Restaurants, Inc. has a 52 week low of $155.18 and a 52 week high of $228.27. The stock has a market capitalization of $21.79 billion, a P/E ratio of 20.03, a PEG ratio of 1.71 and a beta of 0.71. The firm has a fifty day simple moving average of $205.05 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $205.90. The company has a quick ratio of 0.27, a current ratio of 0.40 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.96.

Darden Restaurants (NYSE:DRI - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, September 18th. The restaurant operator reported $1.97 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $2.01 by ($0.04). Darden Restaurants had a return on equity of 52.35% and a net margin of 8.90%.The business had revenue of $3.04 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $3.03 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $1.75 earnings per share. The business's quarterly revenue was up 10.4% on a year-over-year basis. Darden Restaurants has set its FY 2026 guidance at 10.500-10.700 EPS. On average, analysts expect that Darden Restaurants, Inc. will post 9.52 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Darden Restaurants declared that its board has approved a share repurchase program on Friday, June 20th that permits the company to buyback $1.00 billion in shares. This buyback authorization permits the restaurant operator to purchase up to 3.8% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback programs are often an indication that the company's management believes its shares are undervalued.

Darden Restaurants Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, November 3rd. Investors of record on Friday, October 10th will be paid a dividend of $1.50 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, October 10th. This represents a $6.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.2%. Darden Restaurants's payout ratio is currently 64.31%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities analysts recently weighed in on the stock. Argus cut their target price on shares of Darden Restaurants from $260.00 to $220.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research note on Friday, September 19th. Wells Fargo & Company cut their target price on shares of Darden Restaurants from $225.00 to $200.00 and set an "equal weight" rating for the company in a research note on Friday, September 19th. UBS Group raised their target price on shares of Darden Restaurants from $225.00 to $245.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Monday, June 16th. Melius assumed coverage on shares of Darden Restaurants in a research note on Monday, July 14th. They set a "hold" rating and a $240.00 target price for the company. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their target price on shares of Darden Restaurants from $218.00 to $240.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research note on Wednesday, June 25th. Eighteen equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and ten have given a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $225.96.

Darden Restaurants 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.

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