Healthcare of Ontario Pension Plan Trust Fund Sells 34,040 Shares of Darden Restaurants, Inc. $DRI

Healthcare of Ontario Pension Plan Trust Fund decreased its holdings in Darden Restaurants, Inc. (NYSE:DRI) by 82.5% in the 1st quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 7,235 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock after selling 34,040 shares during the quarter. Healthcare of Ontario Pension Plan Trust Fund’s holdings in Darden Restaurants were worth $1,418,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the business. Dai ichi Life Insurance Company Ltd grew its position in shares of Darden Restaurants by 66.7% during the 1st quarter. Dai ichi Life Insurance Company Ltd now owns 7,495 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock worth $1,469,000 after purchasing an additional 3,000 shares in the last quarter. Dickmeyer Boyce Financial Management Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Darden Restaurants in the first quarter valued at approximately $569,000. Levin Capital Strategies L.P. bought a new stake in shares of Darden Restaurants in the first quarter valued at approximately $6,059,000. NewEdge Wealth LLC boosted its stake in shares of Darden Restaurants by 57.3% in the first quarter. NewEdge Wealth LLC now owns 7,505 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock valued at $1,471,000 after buying an additional 2,733 shares during the period. Finally, Bellwether Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in Darden Restaurants during the first quarter worth approximately $1,265,000. Institutional investors own 93.64% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities analysts have commented on DRI shares. Evercore lowered Darden Restaurants from an “outperform” rating to an “in-line” rating and set a $230.00 price objective on the stock. in a research note on Tuesday, June 23rd. Piper Sandler upped their target price on Darden Restaurants from $208.00 to $212.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Friday, June 26th. BMO Capital Markets reissued a “market perform” rating on shares of Darden Restaurants in a report on Monday, June 22nd. KeyCorp raised their price target on Darden Restaurants from $226.00 to $228.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, May 27th. Finally, Argus boosted their price target on Darden Restaurants from $240.00 to $245.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, June 30th. Seventeen investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and ten have assigned a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $228.88.

Darden Restaurants Stock Down 1.5%

Shares of DRI opened at $203.97 on Friday. Darden Restaurants, Inc. has a one year low of $169.00 and a one year high of $220.65. The company has a market cap of $23.27 billion, a P/E ratio of 19.65, a P/E/G ratio of 2.03 and a beta of 0.60. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.74, a current ratio of 0.31 and a quick ratio of 0.21. The firm has a 50 day simple moving average of $203.74 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $203.19.

Darden Restaurants (NYSE:DRI) last released 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. The firm had revenue of $3.72 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $3.73 billion. Darden Restaurants had a return on equity of 57.44% and a net margin of 9.13%.The company’s quarterly revenue was up 13.7% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $2.98 earnings per share. Darden Restaurants has set its FY 2027 guidance at 11.100-11.350 EPS. Research analysts forecast that Darden Restaurants, Inc. will post 11.28 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Darden Restaurants Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed 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 yield of 3.2%. This is a boost from Darden Restaurants’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.50. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, July 10th. Darden Restaurants’s payout ratio is 62.43%.

Key Darden Restaurants News

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

• Positive Sentiment: Analysts maintain a “Moderate Buy” consensus rating, with an average price target of $228.88. Deutsche Bank, Guggenheim, Stephens and Bank of America recently raised their price targets, signaling continued confidence in Darden’s longer-term growth prospects. Darden Receives Moderate Buy Recommendation
• Positive Sentiment: Darden’s latest quarterly results showed adjusted earnings of $3.66 per share, ahead of the $3.63 consensus estimate, while revenue increased 13.7% year over year to $3.72 billion. The company also reaffirmed fiscal 2027 earnings guidance of $11.10 to $11.35 per share. Darden Results Analysis
• Positive Sentiment: Darden increased its quarterly dividend to $1.62 from $1.50, bringing the annualized payout to $6.48 and the yield to approximately 3.1%. The higher shareholder return may support the stock’s income appeal. Darden Dividend Increase
• Neutral Sentiment: LongHorn Steakhouse reportedly posted 9.5% sales growth, but Olive Garden lagged, underscoring uneven performance across Darden’s brands. This leaves investors assessing whether higher-growth concepts can offset softness at the company’s largest chain. Darden Brand Performance
• Negative Sentiment: CEO Ricardo Cardenas sold 39,134 shares for approximately $8.2 million after exercising options, reducing his direct holdings by about 31%. CFO Rajesh Vennam sold 8,478 shares worth about $1.8 million, cutting his direct stake nearly in half, while SVP Susan Connelly sold 2,226 shares. The cluster of executive sales is likely weighing on near-term sentiment, although the CEO’s transaction was tied to an option exercise. Darden Insider Sales
• Negative Sentiment: Potential beef-cost inflation and cautious consumer spending remain risks to restaurant margins and traffic, particularly if price increases pressure demand at Olive Garden and other value-oriented concepts. Darden CFO Sale and Beef Inflation

Insider Activity at Darden Restaurants

In other news, CFO Rajesh Vennam sold 8,478 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, July 29th. The shares were sold at an average price of $210.00, for a total value of $1,780,380.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer owned 8,569 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,799,490. This represents a 49.73% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, CEO Ricardo Cardenas sold 39,134 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, July 28th. The stock was sold at an average price of $209.06, for a total transaction of $8,181,354.04. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer directly owned 86,146 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $18,009,682.76. This trade represents a 31.24% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Insiders have sold 59,768 shares of company stock valued at $12,472,786 over the last ninety days. 0.49% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

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.