Darden Restaurants, Inc. (NYSE:DRI) Shares Purchased by UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC

UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC raised its stake in Darden Restaurants, Inc. (NYSE:DRI - Free Report) by 5.6% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 587,571 shares of the restaurant operator's stock after purchasing an additional 30,909 shares during the period. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC owned 0.50% of Darden Restaurants worth $109,694,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Impact Investors Inc acquired a new stake in Darden Restaurants during the 4th quarter worth $405,000. Comprehensive Financial Consultants Institutional Inc. increased its position in shares of Darden Restaurants by 10.8% during the fourth quarter. Comprehensive Financial Consultants Institutional Inc. now owns 14,912 shares of the restaurant operator's stock worth $2,784,000 after purchasing an additional 1,451 shares in the last quarter. Envestnet Asset Management Inc. increased its position in shares of Darden Restaurants by 3.8% during the fourth quarter. Envestnet Asset Management Inc. now owns 358,891 shares of the restaurant operator's stock worth $67,001,000 after purchasing an additional 13,074 shares in the last quarter. US Bancorp DE lifted its holdings in shares of Darden Restaurants by 3.2% in the 4th quarter. US Bancorp DE now owns 146,460 shares of the restaurant operator's stock valued at $27,343,000 after purchasing an additional 4,543 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Twin Capital Management Inc. purchased a new position in Darden Restaurants during the 4th quarter worth approximately $286,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 93.64% of the company's stock.

Darden Restaurants Trading Down 0.3%

Shares of NYSE:DRI traded down $0.60 during trading on Wednesday, reaching $213.45. The stock had a trading volume of 1,066,112 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,319,196. 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 stock has a market cap of $24.98 billion, a P/E ratio of 24.45, a PEG ratio of 2.15 and a beta of 0.74. The business has a fifty day moving average price of $201.61 and a 200-day moving average price of $190.01. Darden Restaurants, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $135.87 and a fifty-two week high of $215.03.

Darden Restaurants (NYSE:DRI - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Thursday, March 20th. The restaurant operator reported $2.80 EPS for the quarter, hitting the consensus estimate of $2.80. Darden Restaurants had a net margin of 9.01% and a return on equity of 50.12%. The firm 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 company earned $2.60 EPS. Darden Restaurants's revenue for the quarter was up 6.2% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, analysts anticipate that Darden Restaurants, Inc. will post 9.52 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Darden Restaurants Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, May 1st. Investors of record on Thursday, April 10th were given a dividend of $1.40 per share. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, April 10th. This represents a $5.60 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.62%. Darden Restaurants's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 63.13%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, SVP John W. Madonna sold 1,806 shares of the business's stock in a transaction 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 sale, 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 sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Also, insider Laura B. Williamson sold 2,289 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Wednesday, March 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $207.26, for a total value of $474,418.14. Following the sale, the insider now owns 10,056 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $2,084,206.56. The trade was 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 have sold 24,613 shares of company stock valued at $5,121,492. Insiders own 0.58% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities research analysts have weighed in on the company. Bank of America boosted their price objective on Darden Restaurants from $230.00 to $238.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Friday, March 21st. Robert W. Baird decreased their price target on shares of Darden Restaurants from $210.00 to $192.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a research note on Monday, April 7th. Stephens lifted their price objective on shares of Darden Restaurants from $175.00 to $178.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a research note on Friday, March 21st. Wedbush increased their target price on shares of Darden Restaurants from $220.00 to $235.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research note on Friday, March 21st. Finally, BMO Capital Markets raised their price target on Darden Restaurants from $175.00 to $190.00 and gave the stock a "market perform" rating in a report on Friday, March 21st. One 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, the stock has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $201.38.

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.