Toronto Dominion Bank Increases Stake in Darden Restaurants, Inc. (NYSE:DRI)

Toronto Dominion Bank increased its holdings in Darden Restaurants, Inc. (NYSE:DRI) by 70.3% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 264,548 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock after acquiring an additional 109,212 shares during the quarter. Toronto Dominion Bank’s holdings in Darden Restaurants were worth $49,388,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. lifted its position in shares of Darden Restaurants by 4.8% in the 4th quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 3,750,658 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock worth $700,210,000 after purchasing an additional 170,336 shares during the period. Raymond James Financial Inc. purchased a new stake in Darden Restaurants during the fourth quarter worth $642,967,000. Geode Capital Management LLC boosted its position in Darden Restaurants by 1.4% during the 4th quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 2,845,302 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock valued at $530,121,000 after acquiring an additional 39,189 shares in the last quarter. Earnest Partners LLC increased its holdings in shares of Darden Restaurants by 0.3% in the 4th quarter. Earnest Partners LLC now owns 1,609,329 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock valued at $300,446,000 after acquiring an additional 4,454 shares during the period. Finally, Northern Trust Corp increased its holdings in shares of Darden Restaurants by 12.3% in the 4th quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 1,441,518 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock valued at $269,117,000 after acquiring an additional 158,168 shares during the period. 93.64% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Darden Restaurants Stock Up 1.2%

NYSE DRI opened at $211.42 on Friday. Darden Restaurants, Inc. has a one year low of $135.87 and a one year high of $211.82. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.02, a quick ratio of 0.23 and a current ratio of 0.37. The business has a fifty day moving average price of $199.11 and a 200 day moving average price of $187.94. The company has a market cap of $24.74 billion, a P/E ratio of 24.22, a P/E/G ratio of 2.15 and a beta of 0.74.

Darden Restaurants (NYSE:DRI) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, March 20th. The restaurant operator reported $2.80 EPS for the quarter, meeting analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.80. The business had revenue of $3.16 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $3.22 billion. Darden Restaurants had a net margin of 9.01% and a return on equity of 50.12%. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 6.2% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the business earned $2.60 earnings per share. Research analysts anticipate that Darden Restaurants, Inc. will post 9.52 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Darden Restaurants Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, May 1st. Shareholders of record on Thursday, April 10th were paid a $1.40 dividend. This represents a $5.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.65%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, April 10th. Darden Restaurants’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 63.13%.

Insider Transactions at Darden Restaurants

In related news, insider Laura B. Williamson sold 2,289 shares of Darden Restaurants stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, March 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $207.26, for a total transaction of $474,418.14. Following the transaction, the insider now owns 10,056 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,084,206.56. This trade represents a 18.54% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, SVP John W. Madonna sold 1,806 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Monday, March 24th. The shares were sold at an average price of $207.88, for a total value of $375,431.28. Following the completion of the sale, the senior vice president now owns 7,192 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,495,072.96. The trade was a 20.07% 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 ninety days. Insiders own 0.58% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities research analysts recently weighed in on DRI shares. UBS Group upped their price objective on Darden Restaurants from $210.00 to $225.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, March 21st. Citigroup boosted their target price on shares of Darden Restaurants from $223.00 to $229.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, March 21st. Sanford C. Bernstein upgraded shares of Darden Restaurants from a “market perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and raised their price target for the company from $180.00 to $215.00 in a report on Wednesday, January 22nd. TD Securities lifted their price objective on shares of Darden Restaurants from $180.00 to $190.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research report on Friday, March 21st. Finally, Bank of America increased their target price on shares of Darden Restaurants from $230.00 to $238.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, March 21st. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have issued a hold rating and seventeen have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $201.38.

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.