BlackRock Inc. Acquires New Position in Darden Restaurants, Inc. $DRI

Key Points

• BlackRock acquired 9.78 million shares of Darden Restaurants in the second quarter, creating an approximately $2.02 billion stake and representing 8.57% of the company. Institutional investors collectively own 93.64% of Darden’s stock.
• Darden reported quarterly EPS of $3.66, slightly exceeding estimates, while revenue rose 13.7% year over year to $3.72 billion. The company also increased its quarterly dividend from $1.50 to $1.62, producing an annualized yield of about 2.9%.
• Analysts maintain a “Moderate Buy” consensus, with 17 Buy ratings and 10 Holds and an average price target of $228.88. However, insiders sold 70,185 shares worth approximately $14.6 million over the past three months.

BlackRock Inc. acquired a new stake in Darden Restaurants, Inc. (NYSE:DRI - Free Report) in the 2nd quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm acquired 9,781,606 shares of the restaurant operator's stock, valued at approximately $2,015,109,000. BlackRock Inc. owned 8.57% of Darden Restaurants as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

A number of other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in DRI. 1620 Investment Advisors Inc. increased its position in Darden Restaurants by 2.4% during the 4th quarter. 1620 Investment Advisors Inc. now owns 2,190 shares of the restaurant operator's stock worth $403,000 after purchasing an additional 51 shares during the period. Cary Street Partners Investment Advisory LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Darden Restaurants by 4.7% in the 4th quarter. Cary Street Partners Investment Advisory LLC now owns 1,144 shares of the restaurant operator's stock valued at $211,000 after buying an additional 51 shares during the period. New York Life Investment Management LLC boosted its stake in shares of Darden Restaurants by 0.3% in the fourth quarter. New York Life Investment Management LLC now owns 15,983 shares of the restaurant operator's stock valued at $2,941,000 after buying an additional 55 shares in the last quarter. HHM Wealth Advisors LLC boosted its stake in shares of Darden Restaurants by 44.8% in the first quarter. HHM Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 181 shares of the restaurant operator's stock valued at $35,000 after buying an additional 56 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Glenview Trust co grew its holdings in Darden Restaurants by 4.9% during the second quarter. Glenview Trust co now owns 1,308 shares of the restaurant operator's stock worth $285,000 after acquiring an additional 61 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 93.64% of the company's stock.

Darden Restaurants Price Performance

Shares of Darden Restaurants stock opened at $222.00 on Thursday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.74, a current ratio of 0.31 and a quick ratio of 0.21. The company has a market cap of $25.33 billion, a PE ratio of 21.39, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.18 and a beta of 0.60. The firm has a fifty day moving average price of $207.95 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $204.19. Darden Restaurants, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $169.00 and a fifty-two week high of $229.76.

Darden Restaurants (NYSE:DRI - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, June 25th. The restaurant operator reported $3.66 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $3.63 by $0.03. Darden Restaurants had a net margin of 9.13% and a return on equity of 57.44%. The firm had revenue of $3.72 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $3.73 billion. During the same period last year, the firm earned $2.98 earnings per share. The business's revenue for the quarter was up 13.7% on a year-over-year basis. Darden Restaurants has set its FY 2027 guidance at 11.100-11.350 EPS. Analysts expect that Darden Restaurants, Inc. will post 11.28 EPS for the current year.

Darden Restaurants Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, August 3rd. Shareholders of record on Friday, July 10th were paid a $1.62 dividend. This is a positive change from Darden Restaurants's previous quarterly dividend of $1.50. This represents a $6.48 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.9%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, July 10th. Darden Restaurants's dividend payout ratio is currently 62.43%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of analysts have recently issued reports on the company. Argus boosted their target price on Darden Restaurants from $240.00 to $245.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Tuesday, June 30th. BTIG Research lifted their price target on shares of Darden Restaurants from $225.00 to $235.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Friday, June 26th. Stephens increased their price objective on shares of Darden Restaurants from $210.00 to $216.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a research report on Friday, June 26th. Robert W. Baird raised their target price on shares of Darden Restaurants from $210.00 to $220.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research note on Friday, June 26th. Finally, BMO Capital Markets restated a "market perform" rating on shares of Darden Restaurants in a report on Monday, June 22nd. Seventeen equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and ten have issued a Hold rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $228.88.

Insider Activity at Darden Restaurants

In other news, SVP Susan M. Connelly sold 9,930 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, July 7th. The shares were sold at an average price of $206.21, for a total value of $2,047,665.30. Following the transaction, the senior vice president directly owned 4,165 shares of the company's stock, valued at $858,864.65. This represents a 70.45% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Also, insider Laura B. Williamson sold 1,110 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, July 31st. The stock was sold at an average price of $204.32, for a total transaction of $226,795.20. Following the sale, the insider owned 10,754 shares of the company's stock, valued at $2,197,257.28. This trade represents a 9.36% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Insiders sold a total of 70,185 shares of company stock worth $14,636,984 in the last three months. 0.67% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Darden Restaurants Company Profile

Darden Restaurants, Inc is a multi-brand, full-service restaurant company headquartered in Orlando, Florida. The company owns and operates a portfolio of casual and fine-dining concepts that together serve millions of guests through company-owned and franchised locations. Its well-known brands include Olive Garden and LongHorn Steakhouse, alongside other dining concepts that span Italian, American, steakhouse and upscale casual formats.

Darden's restaurants provide a range of guest-facing services including dine-in, takeout, delivery and catering, and feature menus tailored to each brand's positioning—Italian-American fare at Olive Garden, steaks and grilled items at LongHorn, and more premium steakhouse and chef-driven offerings at its upscale concepts.

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