Darden Restaurants (NYSE:DRI) SVP Susan Connelly Sells 2,226 Shares

Darden Restaurants, Inc. (NYSE:DRI) SVP Susan Connelly sold 2,226 shares of the stock in a transaction on Wednesday, July 29th. The stock was sold at an average price of $208.17, for a total value of $463,386.42. Following the sale, the senior vice president owned 4,165 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $867,028.05. This represents a 34.83% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this link.

Darden Restaurants Price Performance

DRI opened at $207.09 on Friday. The stock has a fifty day moving average price of $203.73 and a 200 day moving average price of $203.18. The company has a current ratio of 0.31, a quick ratio of 0.21 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.74. Darden Restaurants, Inc. has a 1 year low of $169.00 and a 1 year high of $220.65. The stock has a market cap of $23.62 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 19.95, a PEG ratio of 2.11 and a beta of 0.60.

Darden Restaurants (NYSE:DRI) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, June 25th. The restaurant operator reported $3.66 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $3.63 by $0.03. Darden Restaurants had a return on equity of 57.44% and a net margin of 9.13%.The company had revenue of $3.72 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.73 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $2.98 EPS. The business’s revenue was up 13.7% compared to the same quarter last year. Darden Restaurants has set its FY 2027 guidance at 11.100-11.350 EPS. Analysts forecast that Darden Restaurants, Inc. will post 11.28 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Darden Restaurants Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, August 3rd. Investors of record on Friday, July 10th will be paid a $1.62 dividend. This represents a $6.48 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.1%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, July 10th. This is a positive change from Darden Restaurants’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.50. Darden Restaurants’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 62.43%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

DRI has been the subject of a number of analyst reports. BMO Capital Markets reiterated a “market perform” rating on shares of Darden Restaurants in a research note on Monday, June 22nd. KeyCorp increased their price target on shares of Darden Restaurants from $226.00 to $228.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, May 27th. Stephens raised their price target on shares of Darden Restaurants from $210.00 to $216.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Friday, June 26th. UBS Group lifted their price objective on shares of Darden Restaurants from $230.00 to $240.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, June 26th. Finally, BTIG Research lifted their price objective on shares of Darden Restaurants from $225.00 to $235.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, June 26th. Seventeen investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and ten have assigned a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $228.88.

Key Stories Impacting Darden Restaurants

Here are the key news stories impacting Darden Restaurants this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Brokerages maintain a consensus “Moderate Buy” recommendation, suggesting analysts generally view Darden’s long-term outlook favorably. Darden Receives Moderate Buy Recommendation
• Positive Sentiment: LongHorn Steakhouse reportedly delivered strong momentum, with sales jumping 9.5%, supporting Darden’s strategy of relying on higher-growth brands to drive expansion. Darden CEO Sold Shares as LongHorn Jumped and Olive Garden Lagged
• Neutral Sentiment: Darden is pursuing a leaner growth path, which could improve efficiency and returns but may also signal a more measured expansion strategy. Darden Tests a Leaner Growth Path
• Negative Sentiment: CEO Ricardo Cardenas sold 39,134 shares for approximately $8.2 million after exercising options, reducing his direct holdings by about 31%. While the option-related structure may make the sale less concerning, the sizable transaction can weigh on sentiment. CEO Form 4 Filing
• Negative Sentiment: CFO Rajesh Vennam sold 8,478 shares worth about $1.8 million, cutting his position nearly 50%, while SVP Susan Connelly sold 2,226 shares. Multiple senior-executive sales may reinforce near-term selling pressure. Darden Insider Transactions
• Negative Sentiment: Olive Garden, Darden’s largest brand, lagged LongHorn, highlighting uneven brand performance and potential concerns about traffic and growth at the company’s core business. Brand Performance Report

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Darden Restaurants

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Capital World Investors boosted its position in Darden Restaurants by 2.2% during the fourth quarter. Capital World Investors now owns 15,161,277 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock worth $2,790,128,000 after purchasing an additional 322,079 shares during the period. Vanguard Group Inc. lifted its stake in shares of Darden Restaurants by 0.3% in the fourth quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 14,063,355 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock worth $2,587,939,000 after buying an additional 43,965 shares during the last quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP boosted its holdings in shares of Darden Restaurants by 81.0% during the 4th quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 8,077,567 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock worth $1,486,434,000 after buying an additional 3,613,781 shares during the period. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. grew its stake in Darden Restaurants by 1.7% in the 4th quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 4,189,868 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock valued at $771,020,000 after buying an additional 68,245 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Bank of America Corp DE grew its stake in Darden Restaurants by 44.6% in the 1st quarter. Bank of America Corp DE now owns 3,212,283 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock valued at $629,736,000 after buying an additional 991,230 shares during the last quarter. 93.64% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

About Darden Restaurants

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.