GAMMA Investing LLC increased its stake in Darden Restaurants, Inc. (NYSE:DRI - Free Report) by 46,484.5% during the 1st quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 928,895 shares of the restaurant operator's stock after buying an additional 926,901 shares during the period. GAMMA Investing LLC owned 0.79% of Darden Restaurants worth $192,987,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.
Other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Impact Investors Inc purchased a new position in Darden Restaurants in the 4th quarter worth about $405,000. Comprehensive Financial Consultants Institutional Inc. increased its stake in Darden Restaurants by 10.8% in the 4th quarter. Comprehensive Financial Consultants Institutional Inc. now owns 14,912 shares of the restaurant operator's stock worth $2,784,000 after buying an additional 1,451 shares during the period. Envestnet Asset Management Inc. increased its stake in Darden Restaurants by 3.8% in the 4th quarter. Envestnet Asset Management Inc. now owns 358,891 shares of the restaurant operator's stock worth $67,001,000 after buying an additional 13,074 shares during the period. US Bancorp DE increased its stake in Darden Restaurants by 3.2% in the 4th quarter. US Bancorp DE now owns 146,460 shares of the restaurant operator's stock worth $27,343,000 after buying an additional 4,543 shares during the period. Finally, Twin Capital Management Inc. purchased a new position in Darden Restaurants in the 4th quarter worth about $286,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 93.64% of the company's stock.
Darden Restaurants Stock Performance
Shares of DRI stock traded down $1.54 during mid-day trading on Thursday, reaching $214.71. The stock had a trading volume of 835,369 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,324,409. The business's fifty day moving average is $202.85 and its 200-day moving average is $192.15. The company has a current ratio of 0.37, a quick ratio of 0.23 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.02. The firm has a market cap of $25.13 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 24.59, a PEG ratio of 2.15 and a beta of 0.75. Darden Restaurants, Inc. has a 1-year low of $135.87 and a 1-year high of $218.22.
Darden Restaurants (NYSE:DRI - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, March 20th. The restaurant operator reported $2.80 EPS for the quarter, meeting the consensus estimate of $2.80. Darden Restaurants had a net margin of 9.01% and a return on equity of 50.12%. The business had revenue of $3.16 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $3.22 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the business posted $2.60 EPS. The business's quarterly revenue was up 6.2% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, research analysts forecast that Darden Restaurants, Inc. will post 9.52 earnings per share for the current year.
Darden Restaurants Dividend Announcement
The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, May 1st. Shareholders of record on Thursday, April 10th were paid a dividend of $1.40 per share. This represents a $5.60 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.61%. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, April 10th. Darden Restaurants's payout ratio is 63.13%.
Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth
A number of research firms have commented on DRI. TD Securities raised their target price on shares of Darden Restaurants from $180.00 to $190.00 and gave the company a "hold" rating in a research report on Friday, March 21st. Wells Fargo & Company raised their target price on shares of Darden Restaurants from $180.00 to $200.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a research report on Friday, March 21st. Morgan Stanley raised their target price on shares of Darden Restaurants from $209.00 to $217.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research report on Friday, March 21st. Wall Street Zen raised shares of Darden Restaurants from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research report on Saturday, May 24th. Finally, BMO Capital Markets raised their target price on shares of Darden Restaurants from $175.00 to $190.00 and gave the company a "market perform" rating in a research report on Friday, March 21st. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have given a hold rating and eighteen have issued a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, Darden Restaurants has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $201.38.
Get Our Latest Stock Analysis on DRI
Insider Buying and Selling at Darden Restaurants
In other news, SVP John W. Madonna sold 1,806 shares of Darden Restaurants stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, March 24th. The shares were sold at an average price of $207.88, for a total transaction of $375,431.28. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president now directly owns 7,192 shares of the company's stock, valued at $1,495,072.96. The trade was a 20.07% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, insider Laura B. Williamson sold 2,289 shares of Darden Restaurants stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, March 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $207.26, for a total transaction of $474,418.14. Following the transaction, the insider now directly owns 10,056 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $2,084,206.56. This trade represents a 18.54% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last ninety days, insiders sold 24,613 shares of company stock worth $5,121,492. Company insiders own 0.58% of the company's stock.
About Darden Restaurants
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Free Report)
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.
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