Avantax Advisory Services Inc. Buys 1,527 Shares of Darden Restaurants, Inc. (NYSE:DRI)

Key Points

• Avantax Advisory Services Inc. increased its stake in Darden Restaurants, owning 10,619 shares valued at $2.2 million, reflecting a 16.8% growth during the 1st quarter.
• Darden Restaurants has announced a $1 billion stock repurchase plan, signaling confidence in its stock value, alongside a dividend increase to $1.50 per share.
• Analysts have raised Darden's price targets, with the average consensus now at $225.19, indicating a generally positive outlook on the stock.

Avantax Advisory Services Inc. grew its stake in Darden Restaurants, Inc. (NYSE:DRI - Free Report) by 16.8% during the 1st quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 10,619 shares of the restaurant operator's stock after purchasing an additional 1,527 shares during the period. Avantax Advisory Services Inc.'s holdings in Darden Restaurants were worth $2,206,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of DRI. Envestnet Asset Management Inc. increased its position in shares of Darden Restaurants by 3.8% during the fourth quarter. Envestnet Asset Management Inc. now owns 358,891 shares of the restaurant operator's stock worth $67,001,000 after acquiring an additional 13,074 shares in the last quarter. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC lifted its stake in shares of Darden Restaurants by 31.8% during the 1st quarter. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC now owns 15,230 shares of the restaurant operator's stock worth $3,164,000 after buying an additional 3,677 shares during the last quarter. Twin Capital Management Inc. bought a new stake in Darden Restaurants in the 4th quarter valued at about $286,000. Choreo LLC grew its position in shares of Darden Restaurants by 46.0% during the 1st quarter. Choreo LLC now owns 16,248 shares of the restaurant operator's stock worth $3,376,000 after purchasing an additional 5,119 shares in the last quarter. Finally, O Shaughnessy Asset Management LLC raised its position in shares of Darden Restaurants by 15.4% in the 4th quarter. O Shaughnessy Asset Management LLC now owns 12,882 shares of the restaurant operator's stock valued at $2,405,000 after buying an additional 1,720 shares in the last quarter. 93.64% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Transactions at Darden Restaurants

In other Darden Restaurants news, SVP Matthew R. Broad sold 6,949 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, June 30th. The shares were sold at an average price of $218.00, for a total transaction of $1,514,882.00. Following the sale, the senior vice president owned 14,367 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,132,006. This trade represents a 32.60% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, insider Todd Burrowes sold 13,569 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, June 30th. The stock was sold at an average price of $216.45, for a total transaction of $2,937,010.05. Following the sale, the insider owned 46,327 shares in the company, valued at approximately $10,027,479.15. The trade was a 22.65% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last ninety days, insiders have sold 45,727 shares of company stock worth $10,022,232. 0.58% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Darden Restaurants Price Performance

DRI traded up $0.79 on Monday, reaching $204.28. The company had a trading volume of 542,078 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,353,106. The company has a market cap of $23.91 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 23.00, a P/E/G ratio of 1.87 and a beta of 0.75. Darden Restaurants, Inc. has a 52-week low of $140.10 and a 52-week high of $228.27. The business has a 50 day simple moving average of $214.00 and a 200 day simple moving average of $203.07. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.92, a quick ratio of 0.28 and a current ratio of 0.42.

Darden Restaurants (NYSE:DRI - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Friday, June 20th. The restaurant operator reported $2.98 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $2.97 by $0.01. The business had revenue of $3.27 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $3.25 billion. Darden Restaurants had a net margin of 8.69% and a return on equity of 51.81%. The company's quarterly revenue was up 10.6% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned $2.65 EPS. As a group, sell-side analysts anticipate that Darden Restaurants, Inc. will post 9.52 EPS for the current year.

Darden Restaurants declared that its board has authorized a share repurchase plan on Friday, June 20th that allows the company to repurchase $1.00 billion in shares. This repurchase authorization allows the restaurant operator to purchase up to 3.8% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares repurchase plans are typically an indication that the company's board believes its stock is undervalued.

Darden Restaurants Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, August 1st. Stockholders of record on Thursday, July 10th were paid a $1.50 dividend. This is a boost from Darden Restaurants's previous quarterly dividend of $1.40. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, July 10th. This represents a $6.00 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.9%. Darden Restaurants's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 67.57%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

DRI has been the topic of several research reports. Morgan Stanley lifted their price target on shares of Darden Restaurants from $215.00 to $235.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a report on Wednesday, June 18th. Raymond James Financial boosted their price target on shares of Darden Restaurants from $230.00 to $240.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research report on Monday, June 23rd. UBS Group boosted their price target on shares of Darden Restaurants from $225.00 to $245.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Monday, June 16th. Wall Street Zen downgraded shares of Darden Restaurants from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Friday, June 27th. Finally, BMO Capital Markets boosted their target price on shares of Darden Restaurants from $190.00 to $215.00 and gave the company a "market perform" rating in a research report on Wednesday, June 25th. Twelve analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and sixteen have issued a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Darden Restaurants has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $225.19.

Darden Restaurants Profile

Darden Restaurants, Inc, together with its subsidiaries, owns and operates full-service restaurants in the United States and Canada. It operates under Olive Garden, LongHorn Steakhouse, Cheddar's Scratch Kitchen, Yard House, The Capital Grille, Seasons 52, Bahama Breeze, Eddie V's Prime Seafood, and Capital Burger brand names.