Analysts Set Darden Restaurants, Inc. (NYSE:DRI) PT at $187.44

Shares of Darden Restaurants, Inc. (NYSE:DRI) have received an average rating of “Moderate Buy” from the twenty-five brokerages that are presently covering the firm, MarketBeat Ratings reports. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell recommendation, eight have given a hold recommendation and sixteen have issued a buy recommendation on the company. The average twelve-month price target among brokerages that have updated their coverage on the stock in the last year is $187.44.

DRI has been the subject of a number of research reports. The Goldman Sachs Group started coverage on shares of Darden Restaurants in a research note on Thursday, December 5th. They issued a “neutral” rating and a $183.00 price objective for the company. Morgan Stanley increased their price objective on shares of Darden Restaurants from $193.00 to $209.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Monday, December 23rd. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their price objective on shares of Darden Restaurants from $165.00 to $176.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday, September 20th. KeyCorp increased their target price on Darden Restaurants from $194.00 to $200.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday, December 20th. Finally, Bank of America boosted their price target on Darden Restaurants from $195.00 to $211.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, December 20th.

Insider Buying and Selling at Darden Restaurants

In other Darden Restaurants news, CFO Rajesh Vennam sold 7,228 shares of Darden Restaurants stock in a transaction dated Monday, December 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $181.71, for a total transaction of $1,313,399.88. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer now owns 10,262 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,864,708.02. This trade represents a 41.33 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Company insiders own 0.58% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of Darden Restaurants

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Mizuho Securities USA LLC boosted its position in Darden Restaurants by 96,162.9% in the 3rd quarter. Mizuho Securities USA LLC now owns 8,861,000 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock worth $1,454,356,000 after purchasing an additional 8,851,795 shares in the last quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA grew its position in Darden Restaurants by 111.0% during the third quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA now owns 1,469,083 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock valued at $241,121,000 after buying an additional 772,907 shares during the period. International Assets Investment Management LLC increased its holdings in Darden Restaurants by 16,996.9% in the third quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC now owns 377,500 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock valued at $61,959,000 after buying an additional 375,292 shares in the last quarter. Healthcare of Ontario Pension Plan Trust Fund acquired a new position in shares of Darden Restaurants in the third quarter worth about $40,048,000. Finally, Toronto Dominion Bank boosted its stake in shares of Darden Restaurants by 139.9% during the 2nd quarter. Toronto Dominion Bank now owns 352,344 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock worth $53,317,000 after acquiring an additional 205,450 shares in the last quarter. 93.64% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Darden Restaurants Price Performance

Shares of DRI stock opened at $187.72 on Wednesday. The company’s 50-day simple moving average is $171.87 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $159.98. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.65, a current ratio of 0.35 and a quick ratio of 0.22. Darden Restaurants has a one year low of $135.87 and a one year high of $189.18. The company has a market capitalization of $22.06 billion, a P/E ratio of 21.65, a P/E/G ratio of 1.90 and a beta of 1.31.

Darden Restaurants (NYSE:DRI) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, December 19th. The restaurant operator reported $2.03 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, hitting the consensus estimate of $2.03. Darden Restaurants had a return on equity of 49.46% and a net margin of 9.11%. The company had revenue of $2.89 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $2.87 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $1.84 earnings per share. Darden Restaurants’s revenue was up 6.0% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, equities analysts anticipate that Darden Restaurants will post 9.47 EPS for the current year.

Darden Restaurants Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, February 3rd. Shareholders of record on Friday, January 10th will be given a dividend of $1.40 per share. This represents a $5.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.98%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, January 10th. Darden Restaurants’s dividend payout ratio is presently 64.15%.

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.