Darden Restaurants (NYSE:DRI) Rating Reiterated by Stephens

Darden Restaurants (NYSE:DRI)‘s stock had its “equal weight” rating reaffirmed by research analysts at Stephens in a research report issued to clients and investors on Monday, Benzinga reports. They currently have a $164.00 price target on the restaurant operator’s stock. Stephens’ price target points to a potential upside of 2.41% from the company’s current price.

DRI has been the subject of a number of other research reports. Piper Sandler upped their price objective on shares of Darden Restaurants from $159.00 to $177.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Friday, September 20th. 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, September 20th. Citigroup cut their price objective on Darden Restaurants from $192.00 to $191.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, September 10th. Barclays increased their target price on Darden Restaurants from $180.00 to $192.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday, September 20th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company lifted their price target on shares of Darden Restaurants from $160.00 to $165.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Friday, September 20th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have assigned a hold rating and seventeen have given a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $179.25.

Darden Restaurants Stock Performance

Shares of Darden Restaurants stock opened at $160.14 on Monday. Darden Restaurants has a 52 week low of $134.93 and a 52 week high of $176.84. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.65, a quick ratio of 0.22 and a current ratio of 0.35. The stock has a market capitalization of $19.11 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 18.80, a PEG ratio of 1.83 and a beta of 1.30. The firm has a fifty day moving average of $157.43 and a two-hundred day moving average of $152.39.

Darden Restaurants (NYSE:DRI) last released 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). The company had revenue of $2.76 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.80 billion. Darden Restaurants had a net margin of 9.11% and a return on equity of 49.46%. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 1.0% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $1.78 EPS. As a group, equities research analysts predict that Darden Restaurants will post 9.47 EPS for the current year.

Insider Activity

In related news, insider Melvin John Martin sold 2,500 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, July 25th. The shares were sold at an average price of $141.09, for a total value of $352,725.00. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now directly owns 11,691 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,649,483.19. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. In other Darden Restaurants news, SVP Susan M. Connelly sold 3,320 shares of Darden Restaurants stock in a transaction on Tuesday, October 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $163.43, for a total transaction of $542,587.60. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president now directly owns 6,155 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,005,911.65. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, 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 completion of the transaction, the insider now directly owns 11,691 shares in the company, valued at $1,649,483.19. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last ninety days, insiders have sold 77,706 shares of company stock valued at $12,813,038. 0.85% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Institutional Trading of Darden Restaurants

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Rise Advisors LLC lifted its position in Darden Restaurants by 131.3% during the first quarter. Rise Advisors LLC now owns 155 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock worth $26,000 after acquiring an additional 88 shares during the last quarter. ESL Trust Services LLC acquired a new stake in Darden Restaurants during the 1st quarter worth approximately $27,000. Meeder Asset Management Inc. bought a new stake in Darden Restaurants in the 2nd quarter valued at $27,000. Kimelman & Baird LLC acquired a new position in Darden Restaurants in the 2nd quarter valued at $30,000. Finally, Innealta Capital LLC bought a new position in Darden Restaurants during the 2nd quarter worth $31,000. Institutional investors own 93.64% of the company’s stock.

About Darden Restaurants

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.