Investors Research Corp Has $104,000 Position in Darden Restaurants, Inc. (NYSE:DRI)

Investors Research Corp lowered its position in shares of Darden Restaurants, Inc. (NYSE:DRI - Free Report) by 85.8% in the 1st quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 500 shares of the restaurant operator's stock after selling 3,025 shares during the quarter. Investors Research Corp's holdings in Darden Restaurants were worth $104,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. First Horizon Advisors Inc. grew its stake in shares of Darden Restaurants by 2.5% in the 4th quarter. First Horizon Advisors Inc. now owns 2,418 shares of the restaurant operator's stock worth $451,000 after purchasing an additional 59 shares during the last quarter. KBC Group NV boosted its holdings in Darden Restaurants by 0.5% during the fourth quarter. KBC Group NV now owns 13,371 shares of the restaurant operator's stock worth $2,497,000 after buying an additional 60 shares in the last quarter. TIAA Trust National Association grew its position in Darden Restaurants by 4.8% in the fourth quarter. TIAA Trust National Association now owns 1,401 shares of the restaurant operator's stock worth $262,000 after buying an additional 64 shares during the last quarter. Beacon Investment Advisors LLC increased its holdings in shares of Darden Restaurants by 0.3% in the fourth quarter. Beacon Investment Advisors LLC now owns 21,527 shares of the restaurant operator's stock valued at $4,019,000 after buying an additional 66 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Coldstream Capital Management Inc. lifted its position in shares of Darden Restaurants by 2.1% during the 4th quarter. Coldstream Capital Management Inc. now owns 3,199 shares of the restaurant operator's stock valued at $597,000 after acquiring an additional 66 shares during the last quarter. 93.64% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Darden Restaurants Stock Performance

DRI stock traded up $0.37 during midday trading on Tuesday, hitting $217.22. 1,255,909 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 1,322,711. Darden Restaurants, Inc. has a twelve month low of $135.87 and a twelve month high of $218.18. The stock has a market capitalization of $25.42 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 24.88, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.15 and a beta of 0.74. The company has a quick ratio of 0.23, a current ratio of 0.37 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.02. The business has a 50 day simple moving average of $202.30 and a 200-day simple moving average of $191.45.

Darden Restaurants (NYSE:DRI - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, March 20th. The restaurant operator reported $2.80 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, meeting analysts' consensus estimates of $2.80. The company had revenue of $3.16 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $3.22 billion. Darden Restaurants had a net margin of 9.01% and a return on equity of 50.12%. The business's quarterly revenue was up 6.2% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $2.60 earnings per share. As a group, equities research analysts predict that Darden Restaurants, Inc. will post 9.52 earnings per share for the current year.

Darden Restaurants Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, May 1st. Shareholders of record on Thursday, April 10th were given a $1.40 dividend. This represents a $5.60 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.58%. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, April 10th. Darden Restaurants's dividend payout ratio is currently 63.13%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

DRI has been the subject of several analyst reports. Robert W. Baird reduced their target price on Darden Restaurants from $210.00 to $192.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a report on Monday, April 7th. Truist Financial upped their price objective on shares of Darden Restaurants from $200.00 to $212.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Monday, March 17th. Barclays lifted their target price on shares of Darden Restaurants from $230.00 to $235.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research report on Friday, March 21st. Bank of America upped their price target on shares of Darden Restaurants from $230.00 to $238.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Friday, March 21st. Finally, Stephens lifted their price objective on shares of Darden Restaurants from $175.00 to $178.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" 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 assigned a buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $201.38.

Insider Transactions at Darden Restaurants

In other news, insider Laura B. Williamson sold 2,289 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, March 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $207.26, for a total transaction of $474,418.14. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now owns 10,056 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $2,084,206.56. This represents a 18.54% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, SVP John W. Madonna sold 1,806 shares of the stock in a transaction dated 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 sale, the senior vice president now owns 7,192 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $1,495,072.96. The trade was a 20.07% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 24,613 shares of company stock worth $5,121,492 over the last three months. 0.58% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

About Darden Restaurants

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.