Darden Restaurants, Inc. $DRI Position Lifted by CIBC Asset Management Inc

Key Points

• CIBC Asset Management Inc increased its Darden Restaurants stake by 56.9% in the fourth quarter, ending with 29,715 shares valued at about $5.47 million. Institutional investors now own 93.64% of the stock.
• Several analysts remain bullish on DRI, with a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $226.88. Recent calls from UBS, Bank of America, and BTIG included buy ratings and higher price targets.
• Recent results were solid: Darden posted quarterly EPS of $2.95, topping estimates, on revenue of $3.35 billion. The company also declared a $1.50 quarterly dividend, equal to a 3.0% annual yield.

CIBC Asset Management Inc raised its stake in shares of Darden Restaurants, Inc. (NYSE:DRI - Free Report) by 56.9% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 29,715 shares of the restaurant operator's stock after acquiring an additional 10,781 shares during the quarter. CIBC Asset Management Inc's holdings in Darden Restaurants were worth $5,468,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other large investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Torren Management LLC bought a new position in shares of Darden Restaurants in the 4th quarter worth about $26,000. Thurston Springer Miller Herd & Titak Inc. increased its holdings in shares of Darden Restaurants by 926.7% in the 4th quarter. Thurston Springer Miller Herd & Titak Inc. now owns 154 shares of the restaurant operator's stock worth $28,000 after acquiring an additional 139 shares during the period. BOK Financial Private Wealth Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Darden Restaurants in the 4th quarter worth about $29,000. Ameriflex Group Inc. acquired a new position in Darden Restaurants during the 3rd quarter valued at about $35,000. Finally, Flagship Harbor Advisors LLC acquired a new position in Darden Restaurants during the 4th quarter valued at about $39,000. 93.64% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Insider Buying and Selling

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

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

DRI has been the topic of several recent research reports. UBS Group reaffirmed a "buy" rating and issued a $230.00 price objective on shares of Darden Restaurants in a research note on Tuesday, March 10th. Stephens raised their target price on shares of Darden Restaurants from $205.00 to $210.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a report on Friday, March 20th. Wells Fargo & Company raised their price target on shares of Darden Restaurants from $200.00 to $210.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a report on Friday, March 20th. Bank of America boosted their price target on Darden Restaurants from $272.00 to $276.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Friday. Finally, BTIG Research reaffirmed a "buy" rating and set a $225.00 price objective on shares of Darden Restaurants 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 stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $226.88.

Darden Restaurants Trading Up 2.4%

NYSE:DRI opened at $198.11 on Friday. Darden Restaurants, Inc. has a 12 month low of $169.00 and a 12 month high of $228.27. The firm has a market cap of $22.69 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 20.96, a P/E/G ratio of 1.75 and a beta of 0.60. The company has a quick ratio of 0.25, a current ratio of 0.39 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.02. The company's 50 day moving average is $197.57 and its 200-day moving average is $197.38.

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

Darden Restaurants Announces Dividend

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

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.

This instant news alert was generated by narrative science technology and financial data from MarketBeat in order to provide readers with the fastest reporting and unbiased coverage. Please send any questions or comments about this story to contact@marketbeat.com.