Vontobel Holding Ltd. Lowers Position in Darden Restaurants, Inc. (NYSE:DRI)

Vontobel Holding Ltd. decreased its position in shares of Darden Restaurants, Inc. (NYSE:DRI) by 15.4% during the third quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The firm owned 3,008 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock after selling 549 shares during the period. Vontobel Holding Ltd.’s holdings in Darden Restaurants were worth $494,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. ESL Trust Services LLC purchased a new stake in Darden Restaurants in the first quarter worth $27,000. Meeder Asset Management Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Darden Restaurants in the 2nd quarter worth about $27,000. Kimelman & Baird LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Darden Restaurants in the 2nd quarter worth about $30,000. Innealta Capital LLC purchased a new position in Darden Restaurants during the 2nd quarter valued at about $31,000. Finally, ZRC Wealth Management LLC bought a new stake in Darden Restaurants during the first quarter worth about $39,000. Institutional investors own 93.64% of the company’s stock.

Darden Restaurants Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE DRI opened at $164.10 on Tuesday. Darden Restaurants, Inc. has a 12-month low of $135.87 and a 12-month high of $176.84. The firm has a market capitalization of $19.59 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 19.26, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.83 and a beta of 1.30. The company has a current ratio of 0.35, a quick ratio of 0.22 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.65. The firm has a 50 day moving average of $158.67 and a 200 day moving average of $152.37.

Darden Restaurants (NYSE:DRI) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, September 19th. The restaurant operator reported $1.75 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.83 by ($0.08). Darden Restaurants had a net margin of 9.11% and a return on equity of 49.46%. The business had revenue of $2.76 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.80 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned $1.78 EPS. The company’s revenue was up 1.0% on a year-over-year basis. On average, research analysts anticipate that Darden Restaurants, Inc. will post 9.47 earnings per share for the current year.

Darden Restaurants Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, November 1st. Stockholders of record on Thursday, October 10th will be paid a $1.40 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, October 10th. This represents a $5.60 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.41%. This is an increase from Darden Restaurants’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.29. Darden Restaurants’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 65.73%.

Insider Activity at Darden Restaurants

In other Darden Restaurants news, CEO Ricardo Cardenas sold 42,403 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, September 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $171.68, for a total transaction of $7,279,747.04. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 58,685 shares in the company, valued at approximately $10,075,040.80. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. In other Darden Restaurants news, SVP Susan M. Connelly sold 3,320 shares of the stock in a transaction on Tuesday, October 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $163.43, for a total value of $542,587.60. Following the completion of the sale, the senior vice president now owns 6,155 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,005,911.65. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, CEO Ricardo Cardenas sold 42,403 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, September 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $171.68, for a total value of $7,279,747.04. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 58,685 shares in the company, valued at $10,075,040.80. 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 sold 77,706 shares of company stock worth $12,813,038. 0.85% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of brokerages have weighed in on DRI. TD Cowen reaffirmed a “hold” rating and set a $150.00 target price on shares of Darden Restaurants in a research note on Thursday, September 19th. UBS Group lifted their price objective on Darden Restaurants from $188.00 to $195.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, September 20th. Citigroup dropped their target price on Darden Restaurants from $192.00 to $191.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, September 10th. Jefferies Financial Group downgraded Darden Restaurants from a “hold” rating to an “underperform” rating and reduced their price target for the company from $154.00 to $124.00 in a report on Thursday, July 11th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their price target 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. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have given a hold rating and sixteen have given a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Darden Restaurants has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $180.13.

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.