Motco Reduces Stock Position in Darden Restaurants, Inc. (NYSE:DRI)

Key Points

• Motco reduced its stake in Darden Restaurants by 12.1%, selling 3,471 shares and retaining 25,157 shares, which were valued at approximately $5.23 million.
• Several institutional investors, including Geode Capital Management and Northern Trust Corp, have increased their holdings, highlighting strong institutional interest as 93.64% of Darden’s stock is owned by institutional investors.
• Darden Restaurants initiated a $1 billion stock buyback program, signifying confidence in its valuation, while also recently increasing its quarterly dividend from $1.40 to $1.50 per share.

Motco lessened its position in Darden Restaurants, Inc. (NYSE:DRI - Free Report) by 12.1% during the 1st quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 25,157 shares of the restaurant operator's stock after selling 3,471 shares during the period. Motco's holdings in Darden Restaurants were worth $5,227,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. GAMMA Investing LLC lifted its position in Darden Restaurants by 46,484.5% during the 1st quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 928,895 shares of the restaurant operator's stock valued at $192,987,000 after purchasing an additional 926,901 shares during the period. Norges Bank bought a new position in shares of Darden Restaurants during the 4th quarter worth approximately $75,137,000. Junto Capital Management LP bought a new position in shares of Darden Restaurants during the 4th quarter worth approximately $48,919,000. Royal Bank of Canada grew its stake in shares of Darden Restaurants by 145.2% during the 4th quarter. Royal Bank of Canada now owns 385,029 shares of the restaurant operator's stock worth $71,883,000 after acquiring an additional 227,977 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Bank of Montreal Can grew its stake in shares of Darden Restaurants by 184.3% during the 4th quarter. Bank of Montreal Can now owns 297,938 shares of the restaurant operator's stock worth $55,622,000 after acquiring an additional 193,134 shares in the last quarter. 93.64% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Darden Restaurants news, insider Laura B. Williamson sold 333 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, July 21st. The stock was sold at an average price of $206.81, for a total value of $68,867.73. Following the completion of the sale, the insider owned 5,423 shares of the company's stock, valued at $1,121,530.63. This represents a 5.79% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, insider Todd Burrowes sold 13,569 shares of the stock in a transaction on Monday, June 30th. The stock was sold at an average price of $216.45, for a total value of $2,937,010.05. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider owned 46,327 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $10,027,479.15. This trade represents a 22.65% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 44,047 shares of company stock worth $9,678,362 in the last quarter. Insiders own 0.58% of the company's stock.

Darden Restaurants Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:DRI traded up $1.87 during midday trading on Wednesday, reaching $204.60. 633,386 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,355,155. The company's 50 day simple moving average is $214.05 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $202.48. The firm has a market capitalization of $23.94 billion, a PE ratio of 23.08, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.87 and a beta of 0.74. Darden Restaurants, Inc. has a 12 month low of $140.10 and a 12 month high of $228.27. 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 announced its quarterly earnings results on Friday, June 20th. The restaurant operator reported $2.98 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $2.97 by $0.01. Darden Restaurants had a net margin of 8.69% and a return on equity of 51.81%. The firm had revenue of $3.27 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.25 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $2.65 earnings per share. The business's revenue was up 10.6% on a year-over-year basis. Equities research analysts expect that Darden Restaurants, Inc. will post 9.52 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

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

Darden Restaurants Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, August 1st. Stockholders of record on Thursday, July 10th will be given a dividend of $1.50 per share. This is an increase from Darden Restaurants's previous quarterly dividend of $1.40. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, July 10th. This represents a $6.00 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.93%. Darden Restaurants's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 67.57%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

DRI has been the subject of a number of research analyst reports. Bank of America lifted their price objective on shares of Darden Restaurants from $252.00 to $253.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Monday, June 23rd. Robert W. Baird lifted their target price on Darden Restaurants from $218.00 to $230.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a report on Monday, June 23rd. Barclays lifted their target price on Darden Restaurants from $235.00 to $255.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a report on Monday, June 23rd. Melius Research raised Darden Restaurants to a "hold" rating in a research note on Monday, July 14th. Finally, Citigroup boosted their price target on Darden Restaurants from $245.00 to $253.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Monday, June 23rd. Twelve equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and sixteen have given a buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat, Darden Restaurants presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $225.19.

Darden Restaurants Company 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.