Leavell Investment Management Inc. Purchases 198 Shares of Darden Restaurants, Inc. $DRI

Leavell Investment Management Inc. boosted its position in Darden Restaurants, Inc. (NYSE:DRI) by 8.2% in the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 2,623 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock after purchasing an additional 198 shares during the quarter. Leavell Investment Management Inc.’s holdings in Darden Restaurants were worth $572,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other large investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. boosted its position in shares of Darden Restaurants by 6.6% in the first quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 3,998,200 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock valued at $830,666,000 after acquiring an additional 247,542 shares during the period. Raymond James Financial Inc. increased its position in Darden Restaurants by 4.6% during the first quarter. Raymond James Financial Inc. now owns 3,601,340 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock worth $748,215,000 after acquiring an additional 157,305 shares during the period. Hamlin Capital Management LLC raised its stake in Darden Restaurants by 0.5% in the 2nd quarter. Hamlin Capital Management LLC now owns 918,387 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock worth $200,181,000 after purchasing an additional 4,989 shares in the last quarter. UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC raised its stake in Darden Restaurants by 6.4% in the 1st quarter. UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC now owns 625,449 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock worth $129,943,000 after purchasing an additional 37,878 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Nuveen LLC bought a new stake in Darden Restaurants in the 1st quarter valued at about $84,801,000. Institutional investors own 93.64% of the company’s stock.

Darden Restaurants Price Performance

Shares of DRI stock opened at $184.92 on Monday. The business has a fifty day simple moving average of $197.74 and a 200 day simple moving average of $204.79. The company has a market cap of $21.51 billion, a P/E ratio of 19.82, a P/E/G ratio of 1.69 and a beta of 0.77. The company has a quick ratio of 0.27, a current ratio of 0.40 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.96. Darden Restaurants, Inc. has a twelve month low of $157.89 and a twelve month high of $228.27.

Darden Restaurants (NYSE:DRI) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, September 18th. The restaurant operator reported $1.97 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.01 by ($0.04). The company had revenue of $3.04 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $3.03 billion. Darden Restaurants had a return on equity of 52.35% and a net margin of 8.90%.The firm’s revenue was up 10.4% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the company posted $1.75 EPS. Darden Restaurants has set its FY 2026 guidance at 10.500-10.700 EPS. On average, sell-side analysts forecast that Darden Restaurants, Inc. will post 9.52 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Darden Restaurants Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, November 3rd. Stockholders of record on Friday, October 10th will be issued a dividend of $1.50 per share. The ex-dividend date is Friday, October 10th. This represents a $6.00 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.2%. Darden Restaurants’s dividend payout ratio is 64.31%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, SVP Matthew R. Broad sold 5,661 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Monday, October 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $193.40, for a total transaction of $1,094,837.40. Following the sale, the senior vice president owned 13,916 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,691,354.40. This trade represents a 28.92% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, insider Laura B. Williamson sold 1,157 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, July 30th. The stock was sold at an average price of $204.70, for a total value of $236,837.90. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider directly owned 10,632 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,176,370.40. The trade was a 9.81% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 7,341 shares of company stock valued at $1,438,707 over the last quarter. 0.49% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research analysts have recently commented on the stock. TD Cowen reaffirmed a “hold” rating and set a $235.00 target price on shares of Darden Restaurants in a report on Thursday, September 18th. Wells Fargo & Company reduced their price target on Darden Restaurants from $225.00 to $200.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, September 19th. Morgan Stanley lifted their price objective on Darden Restaurants from $235.00 to $238.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, September 19th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft cut their target price on Darden Restaurants from $239.00 to $220.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, September 19th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. dropped their price target on Darden Restaurants from $240.00 to $230.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Monday, October 6th. Twenty analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and nine have given a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Darden Restaurants presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $227.15.

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.