United Services Automobile Association Invests $537,000 in Darden Restaurants, Inc. $DRI

Key Points

• United Services Automobile Association acquired a new stake in Darden Restaurants, Inc. by purchasing 2,619 shares valued at approximately $537,000 in the first quarter.
• Several large investors, including Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services and Choreo LLC, significantly increased their holdings in Darden Restaurants during the same period, highlighting strong institutional interest.
• Darden Restaurants has raised its quarterly dividend from $1.40 to $1.50, reflecting a commitment to returning value to shareholders, and also announced a $1 billion share buyback program.

United Services Automobile Association acquired a new stake in Darden Restaurants, Inc. (NYSE:DRI - Free Report) in the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund acquired 2,619 shares of the restaurant operator's stock, valued at approximately $537,000.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also modified their holdings of the stock. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. raised its holdings in Darden Restaurants by 6.6% in the 1st quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 3,998,200 shares of the restaurant operator's stock worth $830,666,000 after purchasing an additional 247,542 shares during the period. Raymond James Financial Inc. increased its stake in Darden Restaurants by 4.6% during the 1st quarter. Raymond James Financial Inc. now owns 3,601,340 shares of the restaurant operator's stock worth $748,215,000 after buying an additional 157,305 shares in the last quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC increased its holdings in shares of Darden Restaurants by 46,484.5% in the first quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 928,895 shares of the restaurant operator's stock valued at $192,987,000 after purchasing an additional 926,901 shares during the last quarter. Hamlin Capital Management LLC increased its holdings in shares of Darden Restaurants by 17.6% in the first quarter. Hamlin Capital Management LLC now owns 913,398 shares of the restaurant operator's stock valued at $189,768,000 after purchasing an additional 136,382 shares during the last quarter. Finally, UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC increased its holdings in shares of Darden Restaurants by 5.6% in the fourth quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC now owns 587,571 shares of the restaurant operator's stock valued at $109,694,000 after purchasing an additional 30,909 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 93.64% of the company's stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities research analysts recently commented on DRI shares. Melius Research raised Darden Restaurants to a "hold" rating in a report on Monday, July 14th. Wall Street Zen lowered Darden Restaurants from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Friday, June 27th. Bank of America raised their target price on Darden Restaurants from $252.00 to $253.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Monday, June 23rd. Truist Financial restated a "buy" rating and set a $252.00 price target on shares of Darden Restaurants in a research report on Tuesday, September 2nd. Finally, Robert W. Baird increased their price objective on Darden Restaurants from $218.00 to $230.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research note on Monday, June 23rd. Sixteen investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and eleven have issued a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $224.92.

Darden Restaurants Price Performance

Shares of DRI stock traded down $0.78 during midday trading on Friday, reaching $212.62. 1,138,507 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 865,632. The firm's 50 day simple moving average is $207.63 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $205.94. Darden Restaurants, Inc. has a 1-year low of $155.18 and a 1-year high of $228.27. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.92, a current ratio of 0.42 and a quick ratio of 0.28. The firm has a market cap of $24.79 billion, a PE ratio of 23.94, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.96 and a beta of 0.71.

Darden Restaurants (NYSE:DRI - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Friday, June 20th. The restaurant operator reported $2.98 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.97 by $0.01. The firm had revenue of $3.27 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $3.25 billion. Darden Restaurants had a return on equity of 51.81% and a net margin of 8.69%.The company's quarterly revenue was up 10.6% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $2.65 EPS. Darden Restaurants has set its FY 2026 guidance at 10.500-10.700 EPS. On average, equities research analysts expect that Darden Restaurants, Inc. will post 9.52 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Darden Restaurants Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared 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. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, July 10th. This is a positive change from Darden Restaurants's previous quarterly dividend of $1.40. This represents a $6.00 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.8%. Darden Restaurants's dividend payout ratio is 67.57%.

Darden Restaurants declared that its board has authorized a share repurchase plan on Friday, June 20th that allows the company to buyback $1.00 billion in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization allows the restaurant operator to reacquire up to 3.8% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback plans are often a sign that the company's management believes its shares are undervalued.

Insider Transactions at Darden Restaurants

In related news, CFO Rajesh Vennam sold 5,780 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, June 24th. The shares were sold at an average price of $222.22, for a total transaction of $1,284,431.60. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer owned 4,555 shares in the company, valued at $1,012,212.10. This trade represents a 55.93% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, SVP Susan M. Connelly sold 4,735 shares of Darden Restaurants stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, June 24th. The stock was 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 approximately $1,029,835.56. This trade represents a 50.71% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 45,727 shares of company stock valued at $10,022,232 over the last ninety days. Insiders own 0.49% of the company's stock.

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.