Darden Restaurants, Inc. (NYSE:DRI) Shares Bought by Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC

Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC lifted its stake in shares of Darden Restaurants, Inc. (NYSE:DRI) by 1.0% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 10,213 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock after buying an additional 97 shares during the quarter. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC’s holdings in Darden Restaurants were worth $1,907,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of the stock. Acadian Asset Management LLC purchased a new stake in Darden Restaurants in the second quarter valued at approximately $486,000. Federated Hermes Inc. raised its position in Darden Restaurants by 14.7% in the 2nd quarter. Federated Hermes Inc. now owns 10,905 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock valued at $1,650,000 after purchasing an additional 1,397 shares during the last quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA boosted its stake in Darden Restaurants by 71.3% during the 2nd quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA now owns 696,176 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock worth $105,345,000 after purchasing an additional 289,876 shares during the period. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP grew its position in Darden Restaurants by 13.1% during the 2nd quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 1,141,974 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock worth $172,811,000 after purchasing an additional 132,643 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Renaissance Technologies LLC increased its stake in Darden Restaurants by 10,491.7% in the second quarter. Renaissance Technologies LLC now owns 127,100 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock valued at $19,233,000 after purchasing an additional 125,900 shares during the period. 93.64% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, CFO Rajesh Vennam sold 7,228 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, December 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $181.71, for a total transaction of $1,313,399.88. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer now owns 10,262 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,864,708.02. This represents a 41.33 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, SVP Susan M. Connelly sold 9,264 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Monday, January 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $184.68, for a total transaction of $1,710,875.52. Following the transaction, the senior vice president now owns 4,567 shares in the company, valued at approximately $843,433.56. The trade was a 66.98 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.58% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Darden Restaurants Price Performance

Darden Restaurants stock opened at $182.60 on Wednesday. The firm has a market capitalization of $21.39 billion, a PE ratio of 21.06, a P/E/G ratio of 1.89 and a beta of 1.31. Darden Restaurants, Inc. has a 52 week low of $135.87 and a 52 week high of $189.18. The firm’s 50-day simple moving average is $174.58 and its 200 day simple moving average is $161.25. The company has a quick ratio of 0.22, a current ratio of 0.35 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.65.

Darden Restaurants (NYSE:DRI) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, December 19th. The restaurant operator reported $2.03 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, meeting the consensus estimate of $2.03. Darden Restaurants had a net margin of 9.11% and a return on equity of 49.46%. The company had revenue of $2.89 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.87 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $1.84 earnings per share. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 6.0% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities research analysts predict that Darden Restaurants, Inc. will post 9.47 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Darden Restaurants Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, February 3rd. Shareholders of record on Friday, January 10th will be issued a $1.40 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Friday, January 10th. This represents a $5.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.07%. Darden Restaurants’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 64.15%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities research analysts have recently weighed in on the stock. Citigroup decreased their target price on shares of Darden Restaurants from $209.00 to $206.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, December 4th. Oppenheimer increased their price objective on Darden Restaurants from $200.00 to $218.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Tuesday, January 7th. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their target price on Darden Restaurants from $160.00 to $165.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Friday, September 20th. Bank of America increased their price target on Darden Restaurants from $195.00 to $211.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, December 20th. Finally, Stephens boosted their price objective on shares of Darden Restaurants from $164.00 to $175.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Friday, December 20th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have assigned a hold rating and sixteen have issued a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $189.12.

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.