Darden Restaurants, Inc. (NYSE:DRI) Shares Acquired by Harvest Fund Management Co. Ltd

Key Points

• Harvest Fund Management Co. Ltd increased its stake in Darden Restaurants by 302.7%, owning 1,957 shares valued at approximately $407,000 as of the latest SEC filing.
• Insider trading activity showed that Darden executives sold a total of 44,047 shares valued at around $9.68 million in the last 90 days.
• Darden Restaurants has initiated a $1.00 billion share repurchase program and recently increased its quarterly dividend from $1.40 to $1.50 per share.

Harvest Fund Management Co. Ltd increased its position in Darden Restaurants, Inc. (NYSE:DRI - Free Report) by 302.7% during the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 1,957 shares of the restaurant operator's stock after purchasing an additional 1,471 shares during the period. Harvest Fund Management Co. Ltd's holdings in Darden Restaurants were worth $407,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of the business. GAMMA Investing LLC grew its holdings in shares of Darden Restaurants by 46,484.5% during the first quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 928,895 shares of the restaurant operator's stock valued at $192,987,000 after buying an additional 926,901 shares during the last quarter. Norges Bank purchased a new stake in Darden Restaurants during the 4th quarter valued at $75,137,000. Junto Capital Management LP bought a new stake in shares of Darden Restaurants in the 4th quarter worth $48,919,000. Royal Bank of Canada raised its stake in shares of Darden Restaurants by 145.2% in the fourth quarter. Royal Bank of Canada now owns 385,029 shares of the restaurant operator's stock worth $71,883,000 after purchasing an additional 227,977 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Bank of Montreal Can raised its stake in shares of Darden Restaurants by 184.3% in the fourth quarter. Bank of Montreal Can now owns 297,938 shares of the restaurant operator's stock worth $55,622,000 after purchasing an additional 193,134 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 93.64% of the company's stock.

Insider Activity

In related news, SVP Susan M. Connelly sold 4,735 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, June 24th. The shares were sold at an average price of $223.78, for a total transaction of $1,059,598.30. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president owned 4,602 shares in the company, valued at $1,029,835.56. This represents a 50.71% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, insider Todd Burrowes sold 13,569 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, June 30th. The shares were sold at an average price of $216.45, for a total value of $2,937,010.05. Following the transaction, the insider directly owned 46,327 shares of the company's stock, valued at $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. Insiders own 0.58% of the company's stock.

Darden Restaurants Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE:DRI traded up $1.11 during trading on Monday, hitting $204.60. 599,331 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 1,353,226. The company has a fifty day moving average price of $214.00 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $203.07. Darden Restaurants, Inc. has a 52-week low of $140.10 and a 52-week high of $228.27. The company has a market cap of $23.94 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 23.04, a P/E/G ratio of 1.87 and a beta of 0.75. The company has a quick ratio of 0.28, a current ratio of 0.42 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.92.

Darden Restaurants (NYSE:DRI - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data 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 company had revenue of $3.27 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $3.25 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company earned $2.65 earnings per share. The firm's revenue for the quarter was up 10.6% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, equities analysts predict that Darden Restaurants, Inc. will post 9.52 EPS for the current year.

Darden Restaurants declared that its Board of Directors has authorized a stock repurchase plan on Friday, June 20th that permits the company to buyback $1.00 billion in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization permits the restaurant operator to buy up to 3.8% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback plans are generally an indication that the company's management believes its stock is undervalued.

Darden Restaurants Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, August 1st. Stockholders of record on Thursday, July 10th were given a dividend of $1.50 per share. This is a positive change from Darden Restaurants's previous quarterly dividend of $1.40. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, July 10th. This represents a $6.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.9%. Darden Restaurants's payout ratio is 67.57%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research firms have issued reports on DRI. TD Securities reaffirmed a "hold" rating and set a $215.00 price target on shares of Darden Restaurants in a report on Friday, June 20th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their target price on Darden Restaurants from $218.00 to $240.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research report on Wednesday, June 25th. Wall Street Zen cut Darden Restaurants from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Friday, June 27th. Citigroup upped their price objective on Darden Restaurants from $245.00 to $253.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Monday, June 23rd. Finally, KeyCorp upped their target price on Darden Restaurants from $230.00 to $245.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a report on Monday, June 23rd. Twelve analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and sixteen have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average 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.