NewEdge Wealth LLC Takes $1.55 Million Position in Darden Restaurants, Inc. $DRI

NewEdge Wealth LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Darden Restaurants, Inc. (NYSE:DRI) during the second quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm purchased 7,535 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock, valued at approximately $1,552,000.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in DRI. Torren Management LLC bought a new position in shares of Darden Restaurants during the 4th quarter worth approximately $26,000. Union Savings Bank bought a new position in shares of Darden Restaurants in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $28,000. Bell Investment Advisors Inc purchased a new stake in shares of Darden Restaurants during the second quarter valued at approximately $28,000. BOK Financial Private Wealth Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Darden Restaurants during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $29,000. Finally, DV Equities LLC bought a new stake in Darden Restaurants during the fourth quarter worth $30,000. 93.64% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Darden Restaurants Stock Up 1.8%

Shares of NYSE DRI opened at $221.81 on Friday. Darden Restaurants, Inc. has a one year low of $169.00 and a one year high of $229.76. 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 business’s fifty day moving average price is $208.30 and its 200-day moving average price is $204.45. The stock has a market capitalization of $25.30 billion, a PE ratio of 21.37, a P/E/G ratio of 2.17 and a beta of 0.60.

Darden Restaurants (NYSE:DRI) last announced its quarterly earnings data 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 company had revenue of $3.72 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.73 billion. Darden Restaurants had a return on equity of 57.44% and a net margin of 9.13%.The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 13.7% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $2.98 EPS. Darden Restaurants has set its FY 2027 guidance at 11.100-11.350 EPS. On average, equities research analysts anticipate that Darden Restaurants, Inc. will post 11.28 EPS for the current year.

Darden Restaurants Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, August 3rd. Stockholders of record on Friday, July 10th were given a $1.62 dividend. This represents a $6.48 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.9%. This is an increase from Darden Restaurants’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.50. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, July 10th. Darden Restaurants’s payout ratio is presently 62.43%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, insider John W. Wilkerson sold 8,864 shares of Darden Restaurants stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, August 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $208.33, for a total value of $1,846,637.12. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider directly owned 18,794 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,915,354.02. The trade was a 32.05% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, SVP Susan M. Connelly sold 2,226 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, July 29th. The shares were sold at an average price of $208.17, for a total transaction of $463,386.42. Following the sale, the senior vice president directly owned 4,165 shares in the company, valued at $867,028.05. The trade was a 34.83% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Over the last quarter, insiders have sold 70,185 shares of company stock valued at $14,636,984. Corporate insiders own 0.67% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research analysts have weighed in on the company. BMO Capital Markets reissued a “market perform” rating on shares of Darden Restaurants in a research report on Monday, June 22nd. Argus lifted their target price on Darden Restaurants from $240.00 to $245.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, June 30th. UBS Group boosted their price target on shares of Darden Restaurants from $230.00 to $240.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, June 26th. Evercore lowered shares of Darden Restaurants from an “outperform” rating to an “in-line” rating and set a $230.00 price target for the company. in a research report on Tuesday, June 23rd. Finally, BTIG Research raised their price objective on shares of Darden Restaurants from $225.00 to $235.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, June 26th. Seventeen investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and ten have given a Hold rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Darden Restaurants presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $228.88.

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.