Universal Beteiligungs und Servicegesellschaft mbH Buys 24,913 Shares of Darden Restaurants, Inc. $DRI

Key Points

• Universal Beteiligungs und Servicegesellschaft mbH raised its stake in Darden Restaurants by 35.0%, buying 24,913 shares to hold 96,178 shares (about 0.08% of the company) valued at $17,723,000, according to its latest 13F filing.
• Darden reported quarterly EPS of $2.95 (beats by $0.01) and revenue of $3.35 billion, up 5.9% year-over-year, and declared a quarterly dividend of $1.50 ($6.00 annual, ~3.0% yield).
• Analysts are broadly positive with a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a $226.24 target (18 Buys vs. 9 Holds), while institutional investors own roughly 93.6% of the stock.

Universal Beteiligungs und Servicegesellschaft mbH grew its stake in Darden Restaurants, Inc. (NYSE:DRI - Free Report) by 35.0% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 96,178 shares of the restaurant operator's stock after purchasing an additional 24,913 shares during the period. Universal Beteiligungs und Servicegesellschaft mbH owned approximately 0.08% of Darden Restaurants worth $17,723,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also modified their holdings of the business. Capital World Investors boosted its holdings in shares of Darden Restaurants by 1.6% in the 3rd quarter. Capital World Investors now owns 14,839,198 shares of the restaurant operator's stock worth $2,824,996,000 after acquiring an additional 236,620 shares in the last quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP boosted its holdings in shares of Darden Restaurants by 32.8% in the 3rd quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 4,463,786 shares of the restaurant operator's stock worth $849,726,000 after acquiring an additional 1,102,211 shares in the last quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted its holdings in shares of Darden Restaurants by 78.4% in the 3rd quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 2,666,919 shares of the restaurant operator's stock worth $507,675,000 after acquiring an additional 1,171,890 shares in the last quarter. Capital International Investors boosted its holdings in shares of Darden Restaurants by 1.1% in the 3rd quarter. Capital International Investors now owns 1,904,022 shares of the restaurant operator's stock worth $362,848,000 after acquiring an additional 19,819 shares in the last quarter. Finally, AQR Capital Management LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Darden Restaurants by 239.4% in the 2nd quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 722,529 shares of the restaurant operator's stock worth $157,490,000 after acquiring an additional 509,655 shares in the last quarter. 93.64% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Darden Restaurants Stock Down 0.5%

NYSE:DRI opened at $201.33 on Friday. The stock's fifty day moving average price is $202.66 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $194.18. Darden Restaurants, Inc. has a 52-week low of $169.00 and a 52-week high of $228.27. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.02, a quick ratio of 0.25 and a current ratio of 0.39. The company has a market cap of $23.06 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 21.30, a P/E/G ratio of 1.92 and a beta of 0.64.

Darden Restaurants (NYSE:DRI - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, March 19th. The restaurant operator reported $2.95 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.94 by $0.01. Darden Restaurants had a return on equity of 53.54% and a net margin of 8.66%.The firm had revenue of $3.35 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $3.33 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned $2.80 EPS. The business's revenue for the quarter was up 5.9% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, analysts anticipate that Darden Restaurants, Inc. will post 10.61 EPS for the current year.

Darden Restaurants Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, May 1st. Stockholders of record on Friday, April 10th will be paid a $1.50 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, April 10th. This represents a $6.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.0%. Darden Restaurants's dividend payout ratio is 63.49%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, SVP Douglas J. Milanes sold 3,620 shares of the stock in a transaction on Friday, April 17th. The stock was sold at an average price of $202.16, for a total value of $731,819.20. Following the transaction, the senior vice president owned 274 shares of the company's stock, valued at $55,391.84. This represents a 92.96% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, SVP Lindsay L. Koren sold 300 shares of the stock in a transaction on Tuesday, April 7th. The shares were sold at an average price of $194.32, for a total value of $58,296.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president directly owned 1,617 shares in the company, valued at approximately $314,215.44. This trade represents a 15.65% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Corporate insiders own 0.49% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research analysts have recently commented on DRI shares. UBS Group reissued a "buy" rating and issued a $230.00 target price on shares of Darden Restaurants in a report on Tuesday, March 10th. Sanford C. Bernstein reissued an "outperform" rating on shares of Darden Restaurants in a report on Friday, March 13th. Weiss Ratings raised Darden Restaurants from a "hold (c+)" rating to a "buy (b-)" rating in a report on Monday, January 12th. Citigroup boosted their target price on Darden Restaurants from $235.00 to $238.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Friday, March 20th. Finally, BMO Capital Markets boosted their target price on Darden Restaurants from $205.00 to $220.00 and gave the stock a "market perform" rating in a report on Tuesday, January 6th. Eighteen equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and nine have given a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Darden Restaurants presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $226.24.

Darden Restaurants Profile

Darden Restaurants, Inc is a multi-brand, full-service restaurant company headquartered in Orlando, Florida. The company owns and operates a portfolio of casual and fine-dining concepts that together serve millions of guests through company-owned and franchised locations. Its well-known brands include Olive Garden and LongHorn Steakhouse, alongside other dining concepts that span Italian, American, steakhouse and upscale casual formats.

Darden's restaurants provide a range of guest-facing services including dine-in, takeout, delivery and catering, and feature menus tailored to each brand's positioning—Italian-American fare at Olive Garden, steaks and grilled items at LongHorn, and more premium steakhouse and chef-driven offerings at its upscale concepts.

This instant news alert was generated by narrative science technology and financial data from MarketBeat in order to provide readers with the fastest reporting and unbiased coverage. Please send any questions or comments about this story to contact@marketbeat.com.