Darden Restaurants, Inc. (NYSE:DRI - Get Rating) announced a quarterly dividend on Thursday, June 23rd, RTT News reports. Shareholders of record on Friday, July 8th will be paid a dividend of 1.21 per share by the restaurant operator on Monday, August 1st. This represents a $4.84 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 4.20%. This is an increase from Darden Restaurants's previous quarterly dividend of $1.10.
Darden Restaurants has raised its dividend by an average of 13.2% per year over the last three years and has raised its dividend annually for the last 1 consecutive years. Darden Restaurants has a dividend payout ratio of 53.6% meaning its dividend is sufficiently covered by earnings. Analysts expect Darden Restaurants to earn $8.21 per share next year, which means the company should continue to be able to cover its $4.40 annual dividend with an expected future payout ratio of 53.6%.
Shares of DRI opened at $115.12 on Thursday. Darden Restaurants has a twelve month low of $110.96 and a twelve month high of $164.28. The stock's 50 day moving average is $125.09 and its two-hundred day moving average is $134.37. The firm has a market capitalization of $14.36 billion, a PE ratio of 14.50, a P/E/G ratio of 1.38 and a beta of 1.32. The company has a current ratio of 0.70, a quick ratio of 0.57 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.40.
Darden Restaurants (NYSE:DRI - Get Rating) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, March 24th. The restaurant operator reported $1.93 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $2.09 by ($0.16). Darden Restaurants had a net margin of 11.17% and a return on equity of 36.26%. The company had revenue of $2.45 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.50 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business posted $0.98 earnings per share. Darden Restaurants's revenue was up 41.3% on a year-over-year basis. On average, sell-side analysts predict that Darden Restaurants will post 7.38 EPS for the current year.
A number of research firms have recently issued reports on DRI. Citigroup reduced their price target on shares of Darden Restaurants from $162.00 to $134.00 in a research report on Tuesday, June 14th. Robert W. Baird reduced their price target on shares of Darden Restaurants from $160.00 to $146.00 in a research report on Tuesday. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft reduced their price target on shares of Darden Restaurants from $154.00 to $152.00 in a research report on Friday, March 25th. StockNews.com downgraded shares of Darden Restaurants from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Wednesday, June 15th. Finally, TheStreet upgraded shares of Darden Restaurants from a "c+" rating to a "b-" rating in a research report on Monday, May 9th. Five research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and sixteen have assigned 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 $151.53.
In related news, Director Juliana L. Chugg acquired 1,925 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Monday, March 28th. The stock was acquired at an average cost of $129.01 per share, for a total transaction of $248,344.25. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Company insiders own 0.95% of the company's stock.
Several institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of DRI. Nelson Van Denburg & Campbell Wealth Management Group LLC bought a new stake in Darden Restaurants during the first quarter worth approximately $60,000. Healthcare of Ontario Pension Plan Trust Fund bought a new stake in Darden Restaurants during the first quarter worth approximately $150,000. Covestor Ltd boosted its holdings in Darden Restaurants by 151.9% during the first quarter. Covestor Ltd now owns 1,136 shares of the restaurant operator's stock worth $151,000 after buying an additional 685 shares in the last quarter. Zions Bancorporation N.A. boosted its holdings in Darden Restaurants by 33.1% during the first quarter. Zions Bancorporation N.A. now owns 1,548 shares of the restaurant operator's stock worth $206,000 after buying an additional 385 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Quantamental Technologies LLC bought a new stake in Darden Restaurants during the first quarter worth approximately $241,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 90.71% of the company's stock.
About Darden Restaurants (Get Rating)
Darden Restaurants, Inc, through its subsidiaries, owns and operates full-service restaurants in the United States and Canada. As of May 30, 2021, it owned and operated 1,834 restaurants, which included 875 under the Olive Garden, 533 under the LongHorn Steakhouse, 170 under the Cheddar's Scratch Kitchen, 81 under the Yard House, 63 under The Capital Grille, 44 under the Seasons 52, 42 under the Bahama Breeze, and 26 under the Eddie V's Prime Seafood brands.
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