Darden Restaurants, Inc. $DRI Shares Sold by California State Teachers Retirement System

California State Teachers Retirement System decreased its stake in shares of Darden Restaurants, Inc. (NYSE:DRI - Free Report) by 3.6% during the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 139,335 shares of the restaurant operator's stock after selling 5,259 shares during the quarter. California State Teachers Retirement System owned approximately 0.12% of Darden Restaurants worth $27,315,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Empowered Funds LLC boosted its stake in shares of Darden Restaurants by 34.3% in the 1st quarter. Empowered Funds LLC now owns 12,762 shares of the restaurant operator's stock valued at $2,502,000 after buying an additional 3,262 shares during the period. Maverick Capital Ltd. acquired a new position in shares of Darden Restaurants during the first quarter worth about $675,000. Quantinno Capital Management LP increased its stake in shares of Darden Restaurants by 7.5% during the first quarter. Quantinno Capital Management LP now owns 55,846 shares of the restaurant operator's stock worth $10,948,000 after buying an additional 3,906 shares during the period. OMERS ADMINISTRATION Corp increased its stake in shares of Darden Restaurants by 30.4% during the first quarter. OMERS ADMINISTRATION Corp now owns 5,570 shares of the restaurant operator's stock worth $1,092,000 after buying an additional 1,300 shares during the period. Finally, Waverly Advisors LLC raised its holdings in Darden Restaurants by 35.8% in the first quarter. Waverly Advisors LLC now owns 6,043 shares of the restaurant operator's stock valued at $1,185,000 after acquiring an additional 1,593 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 93.64% of the company's stock.

Darden Restaurants Stock Performance

Shares of DRI opened at $203.97 on Friday. The company has a current ratio of 0.31, a quick ratio of 0.21 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.74. The firm has a market cap of $23.27 billion, a PE ratio of 19.65, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.03 and a beta of 0.60. The company's 50 day simple moving average is $203.74 and its 200-day simple moving average is $203.19. Darden Restaurants, Inc. has a 12-month low of $169.00 and a 12-month high of $220.65.

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

Darden Restaurants Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, August 3rd. Stockholders of record on Friday, July 10th will be issued a $1.62 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, July 10th. This represents a $6.48 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.2%. This is an increase from Darden Restaurants's previous quarterly dividend of $1.50. Darden Restaurants's payout ratio is 62.43%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of brokerages have commented on DRI. Argus increased their price objective on shares of Darden Restaurants from $240.00 to $245.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Tuesday, June 30th. Piper Sandler lifted their price objective on shares of Darden Restaurants from $208.00 to $212.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research report on Friday, June 26th. Citigroup lifted their price objective on shares of Darden Restaurants from $238.00 to $245.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Monday, June 15th. Guggenheim boosted their target price on shares of Darden Restaurants from $230.00 to $235.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Wednesday, June 24th. Finally, Weiss Ratings lowered Darden Restaurants from a "buy (b)" rating to a "buy (b-)" rating in a report on Tuesday. Seventeen analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and ten have given a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $228.88.

Insider Activity at Darden Restaurants

In other Darden Restaurants news, CFO Rajesh Vennam sold 8,478 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Wednesday, July 29th. The stock was sold at an average price of $210.00, for a total value of $1,780,380.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer owned 8,569 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $1,799,490. This trade represents a 49.73% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, SVP Susan M. Connelly sold 2,226 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, July 29th. The stock was sold at an average price of $208.17, for a total transaction of $463,386.42. Following the sale, the senior vice president directly owned 4,165 shares in the company, valued at approximately $867,028.05. This represents a 34.83% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Insiders have sold a total of 59,768 shares of company stock worth $12,472,786 over the last three months. 0.49% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Key Darden Restaurants News

Here are the key news stories impacting Darden Restaurants this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Analysts maintain a “Moderate Buy” consensus rating, with an average price target of $228.88. Deutsche Bank, Guggenheim, Stephens and Bank of America recently raised their price targets, signaling continued confidence in Darden’s longer-term growth prospects. Darden Receives Moderate Buy Recommendation
• Positive Sentiment: Darden’s latest quarterly results showed adjusted earnings of $3.66 per share, ahead of the $3.63 consensus estimate, while revenue increased 13.7% year over year to $3.72 billion. The company also reaffirmed fiscal 2027 earnings guidance of $11.10 to $11.35 per share. Darden Results Analysis
• Positive Sentiment: Darden increased its quarterly dividend to $1.62 from $1.50, bringing the annualized payout to $6.48 and the yield to approximately 3.1%. The higher shareholder return may support the stock’s income appeal. Darden Dividend Increase
• Neutral Sentiment: LongHorn Steakhouse reportedly posted 9.5% sales growth, but Olive Garden lagged, underscoring uneven performance across Darden’s brands. This leaves investors assessing whether higher-growth concepts can offset softness at the company’s largest chain. Darden Brand Performance
• Negative Sentiment: CEO Ricardo Cardenas sold 39,134 shares for approximately $8.2 million after exercising options, reducing his direct holdings by about 31%. CFO Rajesh Vennam sold 8,478 shares worth about $1.8 million, cutting his direct stake nearly in half, while SVP Susan Connelly sold 2,226 shares. The cluster of executive sales is likely weighing on near-term sentiment, although the CEO’s transaction was tied to an option exercise. Darden Insider Sales
• Negative Sentiment: Potential beef-cost inflation and cautious consumer spending remain risks to restaurant margins and traffic, particularly if price increases pressure demand at Olive Garden and other value-oriented concepts. Darden CFO Sale and Beef Inflation

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.

Want to see what other hedge funds are holding DRI? Visit HoldingsChannel.com to get the latest 13F filings and insider trades for Darden Restaurants, Inc. (NYSE:DRI - Free Report).

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.