4,516 Shares in Darden Restaurants, Inc. (NYSE:DRI) Acquired by Woodline Partners LP

Woodline Partners LP acquired a new stake in shares of Darden Restaurants, Inc. (NYSE:DRI - Free Report) in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund acquired 4,516 shares of the restaurant operator's stock, valued at approximately $843,000.

Other hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Kestra Investment Management LLC bought a new stake in Darden Restaurants during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $25,000. TCTC Holdings LLC bought a new stake in Darden Restaurants during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $28,000. HHM Wealth Advisors LLC lifted its position in Darden Restaurants by 103.2% during the fourth quarter. HHM Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 254 shares of the restaurant operator's stock valued at $47,000 after purchasing an additional 129 shares during the last quarter. Webster Bank N. A. bought a new stake in Darden Restaurants during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $51,000. Finally, SBI Securities Co. Ltd. bought a new stake in Darden Restaurants during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $61,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 93.64% of the company's stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities research analysts have issued reports on DRI shares. Citigroup lifted their target price on shares of Darden Restaurants from $223.00 to $229.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Friday, March 21st. BMO Capital Markets lifted their target price on shares of Darden Restaurants from $175.00 to $190.00 and gave the company a "market perform" rating in a research report on Friday, March 21st. Morgan Stanley lifted their price target on shares of Darden Restaurants from $209.00 to $217.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research note on Friday, March 21st. Bank of America lifted their price target on shares of Darden Restaurants from $230.00 to $238.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Friday, March 21st. Finally, Guggenheim lifted their price target on shares of Darden Restaurants from $205.00 to $220.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Monday, March 24th. One investment 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, Darden Restaurants has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $201.38.

Insider Transactions at Darden Restaurants

In other news, CEO Ricardo Cardenas sold 20,518 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, March 24th. The shares were sold at an average price of $208.19, for a total value of $4,271,642.42. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 58,836 shares in the company, valued at $12,249,066.84. This represents a 25.86% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Also, SVP John W. Madonna sold 1,806 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, March 24th. The stock was sold at an average price of $207.88, for a total transaction of $375,431.28. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president now owns 7,192 shares in the company, valued at $1,495,072.96. This trade represents a 20.07% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 24,613 shares of company stock worth $5,121,492 in the last quarter. Company insiders own 0.58% of the company's stock.

Darden Restaurants Stock Performance

DRI traded up $0.59 during midday trading on Friday, hitting $214.30. 1,415,696 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 1,323,530. 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 firm has a market capitalization of $25.08 billion, a PE ratio of 24.55, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.15 and a beta of 0.74. The company's 50-day moving average is $202.11 and its 200 day moving average is $190.95. Darden Restaurants, Inc. has a 52 week low of $135.87 and a 52 week high of $215.68.

Darden Restaurants (NYSE:DRI - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, March 20th. The restaurant operator reported $2.80 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, meeting the consensus estimate of $2.80. The business had revenue of $3.16 billion for 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 revenue for the quarter was up 6.2% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned $2.60 EPS. On average, research analysts expect that Darden Restaurants, Inc. will post 9.52 EPS for the current year.

Darden Restaurants Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, May 1st. Stockholders of record on Thursday, April 10th were paid a $1.40 dividend. This represents a $5.60 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.61%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, April 10th. Darden Restaurants's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 63.13%.

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.