Cibc World Market Inc. Grows Stake in Darden Restaurants, Inc. $DRI

Key Points

• Cibc World Market Inc. increased its stake in Darden Restaurants by 198.4% in the fourth quarter, ending with 43,036 shares valued at about $7.9 million.
• Darden posted a solid quarterly update, reporting $2.95 EPS versus estimates of $2.94 and revenue of $3.35 billion, which was up 5.9% year over year.
• Analysts remain broadly positive on the stock: the consensus rating is Moderate Buy with an average price target of $226.88, while the company also pays a quarterly dividend of $1.50 per share.

Cibc World Market Inc. lifted its position in Darden Restaurants, Inc. (NYSE:DRI - Free Report) by 198.4% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 43,036 shares of the restaurant operator's stock after purchasing an additional 28,613 shares during the quarter. Cibc World Market Inc.'s holdings in Darden Restaurants were worth $7,919,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other large investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Capital World Investors boosted its position in shares of Darden Restaurants by 1.6% in the 3rd quarter. Capital World Investors now owns 14,839,198 shares of the restaurant operator's stock valued at $2,824,996,000 after purchasing an additional 236,620 shares during the period. Vanguard Group Inc. boosted its position in shares of Darden Restaurants by 0.3% in the 4th quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 14,063,355 shares of the restaurant operator's stock valued at $2,587,939,000 after purchasing an additional 43,965 shares during the period. Wellington Management Group LLP boosted its position in shares of Darden Restaurants by 32.8% in the 3rd quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 4,463,786 shares of the restaurant operator's stock valued at $849,726,000 after purchasing an additional 1,102,211 shares during the period. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted its position in shares of Darden Restaurants by 78.4% in the 3rd quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 2,666,919 shares of the restaurant operator's stock valued at $507,675,000 after purchasing an additional 1,171,890 shares during the period. Finally, Capital International Investors boosted its position in shares of Darden Restaurants by 1.1% in the 3rd quarter. Capital International Investors now owns 1,904,022 shares of the restaurant operator's stock valued at $362,848,000 after purchasing an additional 19,819 shares during the period. 93.64% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Darden Restaurants Stock Up 2.4%

Darden Restaurants stock opened at $198.11 on Friday. Darden Restaurants, Inc. has a twelve month low of $169.00 and a twelve month high of $228.27. The stock has a 50 day moving average of $197.57 and a two-hundred day moving average of $197.38. The company has a current ratio of 0.39, a quick ratio of 0.25 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.02. The stock has a market capitalization of $22.69 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 20.96, a PEG ratio of 1.75 and a beta of 0.60.

Darden Restaurants (NYSE:DRI - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, March 19th. The restaurant operator reported $2.95 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $2.94 by $0.01. Darden Restaurants had a return on equity of 53.54% and a net margin of 8.66%.The company had revenue of $3.35 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $3.33 billion. During the same period last year, the firm earned $2.80 EPS. The firm's revenue for the quarter was up 5.9% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, research analysts expect that Darden Restaurants, Inc. will post 10.62 earnings per share for the current year.

Darden Restaurants Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, May 1st. Stockholders of record on Friday, April 10th were issued a $1.50 dividend. This represents a $6.00 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.0%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, April 10th. Darden Restaurants's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 63.49%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

DRI has been the subject of a number of research analyst reports. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft upped their target price on Darden Restaurants from $222.00 to $230.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Friday, March 20th. KeyCorp upped their target price on Darden Restaurants from $226.00 to $228.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research report on Wednesday, May 27th. Citigroup upped their target price on Darden Restaurants from $235.00 to $238.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Friday, March 20th. Stephens upped their target price on Darden Restaurants from $205.00 to $210.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a research report on Friday, March 20th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company increased their price objective on Darden Restaurants from $200.00 to $210.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a research report on Friday, March 20th. Eighteen analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and nine have issued a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $226.88.

Insider Activity at Darden Restaurants

In other news, SVP Douglas J. Milanes sold 3,620 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, April 17th. The stock was sold at an average price of $202.16, for a total value of $731,819.20. Following the completion of the sale, the senior vice president directly owned 274 shares of the company's stock, valued at $55,391.84. This trade represents a 92.96% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, SVP Lindsay L. Koren sold 300 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, April 7th. The shares were sold at an average price of $194.32, for a total value of $58,296.00. Following the completion of the sale, the senior vice president directly owned 1,617 shares of the company's stock, valued at $314,215.44. This represents a 15.65% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. 0.49% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

About Darden Restaurants

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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