Pacer Advisors Inc. Sells 4,067 Shares of Darden Restaurants, Inc. (NYSE:DRI)

Key Points

• Pacer Advisors Inc. reduced its holdings in Darden Restaurants, Inc. by 38.2%, bringing its share count down to 6,568 shares valued at approximately $1.37 million as per its recent SEC filing.
• Darden Restaurants reported a quarterly EPS of $2.98, slightly beating analysts' expectations, alongside a 10.6% year-over-year revenue increase to $3.27 billion.
• The company has authorized a $1 billion stock buyback program, indicating management's belief that its stock may be undervalued, while insiders have recently sold significant amounts of stock.

Pacer Advisors Inc. reduced its position in shares of Darden Restaurants, Inc. (NYSE:DRI - Free Report) by 38.2% in the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 6,568 shares of the restaurant operator's stock after selling 4,067 shares during the period. Pacer Advisors Inc.'s holdings in Darden Restaurants were worth $1,365,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

A number of other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of DRI. Grove Bank & Trust increased its holdings in Darden Restaurants by 171.4% in the first quarter. Grove Bank & Trust now owns 133 shares of the restaurant operator's stock valued at $28,000 after buying an additional 84 shares during the last quarter. ORG Partners LLC grew its position in shares of Darden Restaurants by 108.8% in the 1st quarter. ORG Partners LLC now owns 142 shares of the restaurant operator's stock valued at $30,000 after buying an additional 74 shares during the last quarter. Centennial Bank AR acquired a new stake in Darden Restaurants during the 1st quarter worth $31,000. Alpine Bank Wealth Management purchased a new stake in Darden Restaurants in the first quarter valued at $34,000. Finally, Whipplewood Advisors LLC boosted its stake in Darden Restaurants by 296.0% in the first quarter. Whipplewood Advisors LLC now owns 198 shares of the restaurant operator's stock valued at $41,000 after acquiring an additional 148 shares in the last quarter. 93.64% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of brokerages recently issued reports on DRI. Morgan Stanley upped their target price on Darden Restaurants from $215.00 to $235.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research report on Wednesday, June 18th. Wells Fargo & Company raised their price target on Darden Restaurants from $200.00 to $225.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a report on Tuesday, June 17th. Truist Financial increased their price objective on Darden Restaurants from $230.00 to $252.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Wednesday, June 18th. TD Securities reiterated a "hold" rating and set a $215.00 price target on shares of Darden Restaurants in a research note on Friday, June 20th. Finally, Robert W. Baird raised their target price on Darden Restaurants from $218.00 to $230.00 and gave the company a "neutral" 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. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Darden Restaurants presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $225.19.

Darden Restaurants Stock Performance

DRI stock traded up $1.85 during midday trading on Friday, hitting $203.52. 1,158,409 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 1,092,358. Darden Restaurants, Inc. has a twelve month low of $140.10 and a twelve month high of $228.27. The company has a quick ratio of 0.28, a current ratio of 0.42 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.92. The stock has a market capitalization of $23.82 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 22.92, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.86 and a beta of 0.75. The business has a 50 day simple moving average of $214.00 and a 200-day simple moving average of $202.76.

Darden Restaurants (NYSE:DRI - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Friday, June 20th. The restaurant operator reported $2.98 EPS 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 business had revenue of $3.27 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.25 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business 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 research analysts predict that Darden Restaurants, Inc. will post 9.52 earnings per share for the current year.

Darden Restaurants Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, August 1st. Shareholders of record on Thursday, July 10th will be given a $1.50 dividend. This represents a $6.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.9%. This is a boost from Darden Restaurants's previous quarterly dividend of $1.40. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, July 10th. Darden Restaurants's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 67.57%.

Darden Restaurants declared that its board has authorized a stock buyback program 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 programs are often an indication that the company's management believes its stock is undervalued.

Insider Transactions at Darden Restaurants

In related news, 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 sale, the insider owned 46,327 shares in the company, valued at approximately $10,027,479.15. This represents a 22.65% 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, CFO Rajesh Vennam sold 5,780 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Tuesday, June 24th. The stock was sold at an average price of $222.22, for a total value of $1,284,431.60. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer owned 4,555 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,012,212.10. This trade represents a 55.93% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last 90 days, insiders sold 45,727 shares of company stock valued at $10,022,232. 0.58% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

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.