Darden Restaurants (NYSE:DRI) Releases Earnings Results, Misses Expectations By $0.01 EPS

Darden Restaurants (NYSE:DRI) announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday. The restaurant operator reported $2.08 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.09 by ($0.01), Briefing.com reports. Darden Restaurants had a return on equity of 52.35% and a net margin of 8.90%.The business had revenue of $3.10 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $3.07 billion. During the same quarter last year, the company posted $2.03 EPS. Darden Restaurants’s revenue for the quarter was up 7.3% compared to the same quarter last year. Darden Restaurants updated its FY 2026 guidance to 10.500-10.700 EPS.

Darden Restaurants Stock Performance

Shares of DRI opened at $193.32 on Thursday. The firm has a market capitalization of $22.49 billion, a P/E ratio of 20.44, a PEG ratio of 1.80 and a beta of 0.66. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.96, a current ratio of 0.40 and a quick ratio of 0.27. Darden Restaurants has a one year low of $169.00 and a one year high of $228.27. The business has a fifty day moving average of $179.97 and a 200 day moving average of $198.17.

Insider Transactions at Darden Restaurants

In other Darden Restaurants news, SVP Matthew R. Broad sold 5,661 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, October 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $193.40, for a total transaction of $1,094,837.40. Following the completion of the sale, the senior vice president directly owned 13,916 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,691,354.40. This represents a 28.92% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Insiders own 0.49% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Darden Restaurants

Institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Wealth Watch Advisors INC bought a new stake in Darden Restaurants during the third quarter valued at about $39,000. Triumph Capital Management bought a new stake in Darden Restaurants during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $48,000. MUFG Securities EMEA plc purchased a new position in Darden Restaurants during the second quarter valued at approximately $75,000. Brown Advisory Inc. bought a new position in shares of Darden Restaurants in the second quarter worth approximately $200,000. Finally, Kestra Investment Management LLC increased its stake in shares of Darden Restaurants by 15.4% in the second quarter. Kestra Investment Management LLC now owns 1,091 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock worth $238,000 after purchasing an additional 146 shares in the last quarter. 93.64% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research firms have commented on DRI. Citigroup dropped their target price on Darden Restaurants from $239.00 to $232.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, December 3rd. Argus dropped their price target on shares of Darden Restaurants from $260.00 to $220.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, September 19th. Guggenheim reduced their price objective on shares of Darden Restaurants from $235.00 to $230.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday. Jefferies Financial Group dropped their target price on shares of Darden Restaurants from $210.00 to $200.00 and set a “hold” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday. Finally, TD Cowen reissued a “hold” rating and set a $235.00 price target on shares of Darden Restaurants in a research report on Thursday, September 18th. Nineteen equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and eleven have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Darden Restaurants has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $223.39.

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.