Schonfeld Strategic Advisors LLC Decreases Position in Darden Restaurants, Inc. (NYSE:DRI)

Schonfeld Strategic Advisors LLC decreased its stake in Darden Restaurants, Inc. (NYSE:DRI) by 79.6% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 1,868 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock after selling 7,284 shares during the period. Schonfeld Strategic Advisors LLC’s holdings in Darden Restaurants were worth $349,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of DRI. Principal Financial Group Inc. boosted its position in shares of Darden Restaurants by 4.0% in the third quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 151,293 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock worth $24,832,000 after buying an additional 5,816 shares during the period. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC boosted its position in shares of Darden Restaurants by 1.0% in the fourth quarter. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC now owns 10,213 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock worth $1,907,000 after buying an additional 97 shares during the period. Czech National Bank boosted its position in shares of Darden Restaurants by 5.6% in the fourth quarter. Czech National Bank now owns 25,477 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock worth $4,756,000 after buying an additional 1,345 shares during the period. QV Investors Inc. boosted its holdings in Darden Restaurants by 4.3% in the fourth quarter. QV Investors Inc. now owns 87,702 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock valued at $16,373,000 after purchasing an additional 3,580 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Miracle Mile Advisors LLC purchased a new position in Darden Restaurants in the fourth quarter valued at about $305,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 93.64% of the company’s stock.

Darden Restaurants Stock Down 0.4%

DRI opened at $198.15 on Monday. Darden Restaurants, Inc. has a 12 month low of $135.87 and a 12 month high of $211.00. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.02, a current ratio of 0.37 and a quick ratio of 0.23. The stock has a market cap of $23.19 billion, a P/E ratio of 22.70, a P/E/G ratio of 2.15 and a beta of 0.74. The stock’s 50 day moving average price is $197.67 and its 200 day moving average price is $186.50.

Darden Restaurants (NYSE:DRI) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, March 20th. The restaurant operator reported $2.80 EPS for the quarter, meeting the consensus estimate of $2.80. Darden Restaurants had a return on equity of 50.12% and a net margin of 9.01%. The firm had revenue of $3.16 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $3.22 billion. During the same period last year, the firm earned $2.60 EPS. The firm’s revenue was up 6.2% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, research analysts predict that Darden Restaurants, Inc. will post 9.52 earnings per share for the current year.

Darden Restaurants Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, May 1st. Investors of record on Thursday, April 10th were given a $1.40 dividend. This represents a $5.60 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.83%. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, April 10th. Darden Restaurants’s dividend payout ratio is currently 63.13%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

DRI has been the subject of a number of analyst reports. Stephens increased their price target on Darden Restaurants from $175.00 to $178.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Friday, March 21st. Bank of America increased their price target on Darden Restaurants from $230.00 to $238.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, March 21st. Robert W. Baird reduced their price target on Darden Restaurants from $210.00 to $192.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a report on Monday, April 7th. Guggenheim increased their price target on Darden Restaurants from $205.00 to $220.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, March 24th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company increased their price target on Darden Restaurants from $180.00 to $200.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Friday, March 21st. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have given a hold rating and seventeen have assigned a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $201.38.

Insider Activity at Darden Restaurants

In other Darden Restaurants news, SVP John W. Madonna sold 1,806 shares of the stock in a transaction on Monday, March 24th. The stock was sold at an average price of $207.88, for a total transaction of $375,431.28. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president now directly owns 7,192 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,495,072.96. This trade represents a 20.07% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, insider Laura B. Williamson sold 2,289 shares of the stock in a transaction on Wednesday, March 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $207.26, for a total value of $474,418.14. Following the transaction, the insider now directly owns 10,056 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,084,206.56. The trade was a 18.54% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 24,613 shares of company stock worth $5,121,492 in the last three months. 0.58% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

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.