Citizens Financial Group Inc. RI Takes Position in Darden Restaurants, Inc. $DRI

Key Points

• Citizens Financial Group acquired 9,618 Darden Restaurants shares worth approximately $1.98 million in the second quarter. Institutional investors collectively own 93.64% of Darden’s stock.
• Darden reported quarterly EPS of $3.66, slightly ahead of estimates, while revenue rose 13.7% year over year to $3.72 billion. The company increased its quarterly dividend to $1.62 per share, implying an annualized yield of about 2.9%.
• Analysts maintain a “Moderate Buy” consensus with an average price target of $228.88, although company insiders sold roughly $14.6 million of stock over the past 90 days.

Citizens Financial Group Inc. RI acquired a new stake in shares of Darden Restaurants, Inc. (NYSE:DRI - Free Report) in the 2nd quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund acquired 9,618 shares of the restaurant operator's stock, valued at approximately $1,981,000.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of the company. 1620 Investment Advisors Inc. grew its position in shares of Darden Restaurants by 2.4% during the 4th quarter. 1620 Investment Advisors Inc. now owns 2,190 shares of the restaurant operator's stock valued at $403,000 after purchasing an additional 51 shares in the last quarter. Cary Street Partners Investment Advisory LLC increased its holdings in shares of Darden Restaurants by 4.7% in the fourth quarter. Cary Street Partners Investment Advisory LLC now owns 1,144 shares of the restaurant operator's stock worth $211,000 after purchasing an additional 51 shares during the period. New York Life Investment Management LLC increased its holdings 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 worth $2,941,000 after purchasing an additional 55 shares during the period. HHM Wealth Advisors LLC raised its position 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 worth $35,000 after buying an additional 56 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Glenview Trust co raised its position in shares of Darden Restaurants by 4.9% in the second quarter. Glenview Trust co now owns 1,308 shares of the restaurant operator's stock worth $285,000 after buying an additional 61 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 93.64% of the company's stock.

Darden Restaurants Stock Up 0.0%

DRI opened at $225.36 on Tuesday. The business's fifty day simple moving average is $207.23 and its 200 day simple moving average is $203.88. Darden Restaurants, Inc. has a 52 week low of $169.00 and a 52 week high of $229.76. The company has a quick ratio of 0.21, a current ratio of 0.31 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.74. The stock has a market cap of $25.71 billion, a PE ratio of 21.71, a P/E/G ratio of 2.24 and a beta of 0.60.

Darden Restaurants (NYSE:DRI - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, June 25th. The restaurant operator reported $3.66 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $3.63 by $0.03. Darden Restaurants had a return on equity of 57.44% and a net margin of 9.13%.The firm had revenue of $3.72 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.73 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $2.98 earnings per share. The company's revenue was up 13.7% compared to the same quarter last year. Darden Restaurants has set its FY 2027 guidance at 11.100-11.350 EPS. As a group, research analysts expect that Darden Restaurants, Inc. will post 11.28 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Darden Restaurants Increases Dividend

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

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Darden Restaurants news, CEO Ricardo Cardenas sold 39,134 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, July 28th. The shares were sold at an average price of $209.06, for a total transaction of $8,181,354.04. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer directly owned 86,146 shares in the company, valued at $18,009,682.76. This trade represents a 31.24% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, SVP Susan M. Connelly sold 2,226 shares of Darden Restaurants stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, July 29th. The stock was sold at an average price of $208.17, for a total transaction of $463,386.42. Following the transaction, the senior vice president directly owned 4,165 shares in the company, valued at $867,028.05. This trade represents a 34.83% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Insiders have sold a total of 70,185 shares of company stock worth $14,636,984 over the last ninety days. Corporate insiders own 0.67% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities analysts recently commented on the company. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft boosted their target price on Darden Restaurants from $230.00 to $236.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Friday, June 26th. Robert W. Baird raised their price target on Darden Restaurants from $210.00 to $220.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a report on Friday, June 26th. Stephens lifted their price target on Darden Restaurants from $210.00 to $216.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a research report on Friday, June 26th. Argus upped their price objective on shares of Darden Restaurants from $240.00 to $245.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Tuesday, June 30th. Finally, BMO Capital Markets reaffirmed a "market perform" rating on shares of Darden Restaurants in a research note on Monday, June 22nd. Seventeen research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and ten have issued a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, Darden Restaurants currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $228.88.

Darden Restaurants 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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