Capital International Investors Cuts Position in Darden Restaurants, Inc. $DRI

Capital International Investors lessened its holdings in Darden Restaurants, Inc. (NYSE:DRI) by 77.3% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 433,155 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock after selling 1,470,867 shares during the period. Capital International Investors’ holdings in Darden Restaurants were worth $79,765,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of the company. Meridian Wealth Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of Darden Restaurants in the 4th quarter worth approximately $2,404,000. Sanctuary Advisors LLC raised its holdings in shares of Darden Restaurants by 33.0% in the 4th quarter. Sanctuary Advisors LLC now owns 23,473 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock worth $4,319,000 after purchasing an additional 5,830 shares during the period. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised 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 purchasing an additional 1,171,890 shares during the period. Banco Santander S.A. bought a new stake in shares of Darden Restaurants in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $6,743,000. Finally, Intech Investment Management LLC raised its holdings in shares of Darden Restaurants by 177.3% in the 3rd quarter. Intech Investment Management LLC now owns 12,547 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock worth $2,388,000 after purchasing an additional 8,022 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 93.64% of the company’s stock.

Darden Restaurants Stock Down 1.0%

Darden Restaurants stock opened at $196.16 on Tuesday. Darden Restaurants, Inc. has a 1-year low of $169.00 and a 1-year high of $228.27. The firm has a market capitalization of $22.47 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 20.76, a P/E/G ratio of 1.75 and a beta of 0.60. The company has a current ratio of 0.39, a quick ratio of 0.25 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.02. The firm has a 50 day simple moving average of $197.52 and a 200 day simple moving average of $197.74.

Darden Restaurants (NYSE:DRI) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, March 19th. The restaurant operator reported $2.95 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.94 by $0.01. Darden Restaurants had a net margin of 8.66% and a return on equity of 53.54%. The business had revenue of $3.35 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.33 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $2.80 EPS. Darden Restaurants’s revenue was up 5.9% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, analysts predict that Darden Restaurants, Inc. will post 10.62 earnings per share for the current year.

Darden Restaurants Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, May 1st. Investors of record on Friday, April 10th were paid a $1.50 dividend. This represents a $6.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.1%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, April 10th. Darden Restaurants’s payout ratio is currently 63.49%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Darden Restaurants news, SVP Lindsay L. Koren sold 300 shares of the firm’s 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 of the company’s stock, valued at $314,215.44. This trade represents a 15.65% 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 Douglas J. Milanes sold 3,620 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Friday, April 17th. The shares were sold at an average price of $202.16, for a total transaction of $731,819.20. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president directly owned 274 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $55,391.84. The trade was a 92.96% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. 0.49% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities research analysts recently commented on DRI shares. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft lifted their price target on shares of Darden Restaurants from $222.00 to $230.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, March 20th. Citigroup lifted their price target on shares of Darden Restaurants from $235.00 to $238.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, March 20th. Stephens lifted their price target on shares of Darden Restaurants from $205.00 to $210.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a report on Friday, March 20th. Barclays lifted their price target on shares of Darden Restaurants from $227.00 to $232.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, March 20th. Finally, Weiss Ratings raised shares of Darden Restaurants from a “buy (b-)” rating to a “buy (b)” rating in a report on Tuesday, May 26th. Eighteen analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and nine have issued a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $226.88.

Darden Restaurants Company 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.