Darden Restaurants, Inc. (NYSE:DRI) Shares Sold by Comerica Bank

Comerica Bank lessened its stake in shares of Darden Restaurants, Inc. (NYSE:DRIFree Report) by 2.1% in the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 53,486 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock after selling 1,140 shares during the period. Comerica Bank’s holdings in Darden Restaurants were worth $8,940,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Several other hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of DRI. Tidal Investments LLC grew its stake in Darden Restaurants by 234.3% during the 1st quarter. Tidal Investments LLC now owns 6,712 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock valued at $1,122,000 after acquiring an additional 4,704 shares in the last quarter. Redwood Investment Management LLC purchased a new stake in Darden Restaurants during the 1st quarter valued at about $2,095,000. B. Riley Wealth Advisors Inc. grew its stake in Darden Restaurants by 7.8% during the 1st quarter. B. Riley Wealth Advisors Inc. now owns 3,561 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock valued at $595,000 after acquiring an additional 259 shares in the last quarter. Ascent Group LLC grew its stake in Darden Restaurants by 94.0% during the 1st quarter. Ascent Group LLC now owns 13,254 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock valued at $2,215,000 after acquiring an additional 6,422 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Earnest Partners LLC grew its stake in Darden Restaurants by 5.5% during the 1st quarter. Earnest Partners LLC now owns 1,572,642 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock valued at $262,867,000 after acquiring an additional 82,356 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 93.64% of the company’s stock.

Darden Restaurants Stock Down 2.4 %

Darden Restaurants stock traded down $3.52 during mid-day trading on Friday, reaching $141.83. 1,127,151 shares of the company’s stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,221,396. The company has a market cap of $16.86 billion, a P/E ratio of 17.06, a P/E/G ratio of 1.63 and a beta of 1.29. Darden Restaurants, Inc. has a twelve month low of $133.36 and a twelve month high of $176.84. The company has a quick ratio of 0.24, a current ratio of 0.38 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.61. The company has a fifty day moving average of $147.12 and a 200-day moving average of $156.25.

Darden Restaurants (NYSE:DRIGet Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, June 20th. The restaurant operator reported $2.65 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.61 by $0.04. Darden Restaurants had a net margin of 9.02% and a return on equity of 49.82%. The business had revenue of $3 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.97 billion. During the same period last year, the business earned $2.58 EPS. The company’s revenue was up 8.3% on a year-over-year basis. Sell-side analysts expect that Darden Restaurants, Inc. will post 9.48 EPS for the current year.

Darden Restaurants Cuts Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, August 15th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, July 11th will be issued a $1.29 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, July 10th. This represents a $5.16 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.64%. Darden Restaurants’s payout ratio is 65.73%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several analysts recently issued reports on DRI shares. Bank of America upped their price objective on shares of Darden Restaurants from $180.00 to $185.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, June 21st. Morgan Stanley reissued an “overweight” rating and issued a $175.00 price target on shares of Darden Restaurants in a research note on Friday, June 21st. Raymond James increased their price target on shares of Darden Restaurants from $167.00 to $170.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Friday, June 21st. JPMorgan Chase & Co. dropped their price target on shares of Darden Restaurants from $176.00 to $165.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, May 28th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group cut shares of Darden Restaurants from a “hold” rating to an “underperform” rating and lowered their price objective for the stock from $154.00 to $124.00 in a research report on Thursday, July 11th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, six have assigned a hold rating and sixteen have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $170.95.

View Our Latest Stock Analysis on Darden Restaurants

Insider Activity

In other news, insider Melvin John Martin sold 2,500 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, July 25th. The shares were sold at an average price of $141.09, for a total value of $352,725.00. Following the sale, the insider now directly owns 11,691 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,649,483.19. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. In related news, SVP Sarah H. King sold 15,941 shares of the stock in a transaction on Tuesday, July 30th. The shares were sold at an average price of $147.06, for a total value of $2,344,283.46. Following the transaction, the senior vice president now directly owns 447 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $65,735.82. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Also, insider Melvin John Martin sold 2,500 shares of the stock in a transaction on Thursday, July 25th. The shares were sold at an average price of $141.09, for a total transaction of $352,725.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now directly owns 11,691 shares in the company, valued at $1,649,483.19. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Company insiders own 0.85% of the company’s stock.

About Darden Restaurants

(Free Report)

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.

Further Reading

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Institutional Ownership by Quarter for Darden Restaurants (NYSE:DRI)

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