Ballentine Partners LLC Boosts Stake in Darden Restaurants, Inc. (NYSE:DRI)

Ballentine Partners LLC raised its holdings in Darden Restaurants, Inc. (NYSE:DRI) by 9.4% during the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 1,713 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock after acquiring an additional 147 shares during the period. Ballentine Partners LLC’s holdings in Darden Restaurants were worth $286,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other large investors have also recently modified their holdings of the company. Raymond James & Associates raised its stake in Darden Restaurants by 7.3% in the fourth quarter. Raymond James & Associates now owns 1,968,301 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock valued at $323,392,000 after purchasing an additional 134,098 shares in the last quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP raised its position in shares of Darden Restaurants by 10.3% during the 4th quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 1,809,155 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock valued at $297,244,000 after buying an additional 169,642 shares in the last quarter. Morgan Stanley grew its position in Darden Restaurants by 13.8% in the third quarter. Morgan Stanley now owns 1,669,789 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock worth $239,148,000 after acquiring an additional 202,139 shares in the last quarter. Congress Asset Management Co. MA increased its stake in Darden Restaurants by 0.5% in the fourth quarter. Congress Asset Management Co. MA now owns 1,418,592 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock valued at $233,075,000 after acquiring an additional 6,968 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Earnest Partners LLC raised its position in Darden Restaurants by 4.3% during the third quarter. Earnest Partners LLC now owns 1,399,697 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock valued at $200,465,000 after purchasing an additional 57,192 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 93.64% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

DRI has been the subject of a number of research reports. Barclays cut their price objective on Darden Restaurants from $187.00 to $180.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Friday, June 14th. KeyCorp reduced their price target on shares of Darden Restaurants from $177.00 to $170.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, June 13th. Evercore ISI lowered their price objective on shares of Darden Restaurants from $170.00 to $165.00 and set an “in-line” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, June 13th. Guggenheim increased their target price on shares of Darden Restaurants from $180.00 to $185.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, March 19th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. lowered 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. Five research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seventeen have issued a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Darden Restaurants currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $174.24.

Darden Restaurants Stock Down 0.7 %

NYSE:DRI opened at $153.09 on Wednesday. Darden Restaurants, Inc. has a 1-year low of $133.36 and a 1-year high of $176.84. The company has a market capitalization of $18.27 billion, a PE ratio of 17.97, a P/E/G ratio of 1.65 and a beta of 1.29. The firm’s 50-day moving average price is $150.67 and its 200-day moving average price is $159.53. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.61, a current ratio of 0.38 and a quick ratio of 0.24.

Darden Restaurants (NYSE:DRI) last announced its earnings results 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 during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.97 billion. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $2.58 earnings per share. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 8.3% on a year-over-year basis. On average, equities analysts predict that Darden Restaurants, Inc. will post 9.5 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Darden Restaurants Cuts Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, August 15th. Investors of record on Thursday, July 11th will be paid a $1.29 dividend. This represents a $5.16 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.37%. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, July 10th. Darden Restaurants’s payout ratio is 61.50%.

Darden Restaurants announced that its board has approved a share repurchase program on Thursday, March 21st that authorizes the company to repurchase $1.00 billion in shares. This repurchase authorization authorizes the restaurant operator to buy up to 5% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares repurchase programs are generally an indication that the company’s management believes its stock is undervalued.

Insider Buying and Selling at Darden Restaurants

In other news, SVP Matthew R. Broad sold 4,707 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, April 25th. The shares were sold at an average price of $156.15, for a total value of $734,998.05. Following the transaction, the senior vice president now owns 19,179 shares in the company, valued at $2,994,800.85. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. In other news, SVP Matthew R. Broad sold 4,707 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, April 25th. The stock was sold at an average price of $156.15, for a total value of $734,998.05. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president now owns 19,179 shares in the company, valued at $2,994,800.85. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, Director William S. Simon sold 1,219 shares of the stock in a transaction on Monday, April 8th. The shares were sold at an average price of $158.21, for a total value of $192,857.99. Following the sale, the director now directly owns 6,281 shares in the company, valued at $993,717.01. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.85% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Darden Restaurants 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.