BMO Capital Markets Boosts Darden Restaurants (NYSE:DRI) Price Target to $175.00

Darden Restaurants (NYSE:DRI) had its target price hoisted by stock analysts at BMO Capital Markets from $165.00 to $175.00 in a research report issued on Friday, Benzinga reports. The brokerage currently has a “market perform” rating on the restaurant operator’s stock. BMO Capital Markets’ price target suggests a potential upside of 3.29% from the stock’s previous close.

Several other equities research analysts also recently issued reports on DRI. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their price target on Darden Restaurants from $165.00 to $176.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday. BTIG Research raised their target price on shares of Darden Restaurants from $175.00 to $195.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Friday. Stephens upped their price target on shares of Darden Restaurants from $159.00 to $164.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Friday. Citigroup lowered their price objective on shares of Darden Restaurants from $192.00 to $191.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, September 10th. Finally, KeyCorp boosted their price objective on shares of Darden Restaurants from $170.00 to $194.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, six have assigned a hold rating and eighteen have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, Darden Restaurants has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $179.88.

Darden Restaurants Trading Down 1.7 %

Shares of Darden Restaurants stock traded down $2.85 during trading on Friday, hitting $169.42. 892,915 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,226,596. The firm has a market capitalization of $20.22 billion, a P/E ratio of 20.01, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.76 and a beta of 1.30. The firm’s fifty day moving average price is $149.69 and its 200 day moving average price is $153.39. 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 has a 1-year low of $133.36 and a 1-year high of $176.84.

Darden Restaurants (NYSE:DRI) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, September 19th. The restaurant operator reported $1.75 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.83 by ($0.08). Darden Restaurants had a return on equity of 49.82% and a net margin of 9.02%. The firm had revenue of $2.76 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.80 billion. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $1.78 earnings per share. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 1.0% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, sell-side analysts expect that Darden Restaurants will post 9.47 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, insider Melvin John Martin sold 2,500 shares of Darden Restaurants stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, July 25th. The stock was 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 approximately $1,649,483.19. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. In related news, SVP Sarah H. King sold 15,941 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated 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 owns 447 shares in the company, valued at approximately $65,735.82. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, insider Melvin John Martin sold 2,500 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, July 25th. The stock was sold at an average price of $141.09, for a total transaction of $352,725.00. Following the sale, the insider now owns 11,691 shares of the company’s stock, 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.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Darden Restaurants

A number of large investors have recently made changes to their positions in the company. Rise Advisors LLC boosted its stake in Darden Restaurants by 131.3% in the 1st quarter. Rise Advisors LLC now owns 155 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock valued at $26,000 after purchasing an additional 88 shares during the period. ESL Trust Services LLC bought a new stake in shares of Darden Restaurants in the first quarter valued at about $27,000. Meeder Asset Management Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Darden Restaurants in the second quarter valued at about $27,000. Kimelman & Baird LLC bought a new position in Darden Restaurants during the second quarter worth about $30,000. Finally, Innealta Capital LLC acquired a new stake in Darden Restaurants in the 2nd quarter worth about $31,000. Institutional investors own 93.64% of the company’s stock.

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.