Renaissance Technologies LLC Boosts Stock Holdings in Darden Restaurants, Inc. (NYSE:DRI)

Renaissance Technologies LLC grew its position in shares of Darden Restaurants, Inc. (NYSE:DRI) by 10,491.7% in the 2nd quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 127,100 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock after purchasing an additional 125,900 shares during the quarter. Renaissance Technologies LLC owned approximately 0.11% of Darden Restaurants worth $19,233,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Westwood Holdings Group Inc. purchased a new stake in Darden Restaurants in the 1st quarter worth $72,901,000. Norges Bank purchased a new stake in Darden Restaurants in the 4th quarter worth $58,601,000. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA increased its holdings in Darden Restaurants by 71.3% in the 2nd quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA now owns 696,176 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock worth $105,345,000 after acquiring an additional 289,876 shares in the last quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP increased its holdings in Darden Restaurants by 10.3% in the 4th quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 1,809,155 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock worth $297,244,000 after acquiring an additional 169,642 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Jennison Associates LLC increased its holdings in Darden Restaurants by 311.1% in the 1st quarter. Jennison Associates LLC now owns 207,165 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock worth $34,628,000 after acquiring an additional 156,772 shares in the last quarter. 93.64% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Darden Restaurants Trading Down 1.2 %

NYSE DRI opened at $170.17 on Friday. The firm’s 50-day moving average is $150.34 and its two-hundred day moving average is $153.52. Darden Restaurants, Inc. has a 12 month low of $133.36 and a 12 month high of $176.84. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.61, a current ratio of 0.38 and a quick ratio of 0.24. The stock has a market capitalization of $20.31 billion, a P/E ratio of 19.97, a PEG ratio of 1.76 and a beta of 1.30.

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

Darden Restaurants Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, November 1st. Stockholders of record on Thursday, October 10th will be given a dividend of $1.40 per share. This represents a $5.60 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.29%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, October 10th. This is a boost from Darden Restaurants’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.29. Darden Restaurants’s dividend payout ratio is currently 65.73%.

Insider Transactions at Darden Restaurants

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

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities research analysts recently commented on DRI shares. Wedbush boosted their price target on shares of Darden Restaurants from $170.00 to $200.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Friday. KeyCorp upped their target price on shares of Darden Restaurants from $170.00 to $194.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday. Argus dropped their target price on shares of Darden Restaurants from $186.00 to $175.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, June 25th. Citigroup dropped their target price on shares of Darden Restaurants from $192.00 to $191.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, September 10th. Finally, Sanford C. Bernstein lowered shares of Darden Restaurants from an “outperform” rating to a “market perform” rating and dropped their target price for the stock from $190.00 to $180.00 in a report on Friday. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have assigned a hold rating and eighteen have given a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $179.28.

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.