Darden Restaurants, Inc. $DRI Stock Holdings Raised by TD Asset Management Inc

TD Asset Management Inc increased its position in Darden Restaurants, Inc. (NYSE:DRI) by 121.1% in the second quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 97,267 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock after purchasing an additional 53,269 shares during the period. TD Asset Management Inc’s holdings in Darden Restaurants were worth $21,201,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Nuveen LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Darden Restaurants in the first quarter valued at approximately $84,801,000. 1832 Asset Management L.P. acquired a new position in Darden Restaurants in the 1st quarter worth approximately $53,760,000. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. grew its position in Darden Restaurants by 6.6% during the 1st quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 3,998,200 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock worth $830,666,000 after purchasing an additional 247,542 shares in the last quarter. Woodline Partners LP lifted its holdings in shares of Darden Restaurants by 3,824.2% in the first quarter. Woodline Partners LP now owns 177,217 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock valued at $36,819,000 after purchasing an additional 172,701 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Raymond James Financial Inc. boosted its position in shares of Darden Restaurants by 4.6% in the first quarter. Raymond James Financial Inc. now owns 3,601,340 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock worth $748,215,000 after buying an additional 157,305 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 93.64% of the company’s stock.

Insider Buying and Selling at Darden Restaurants

In related news, insider Laura B. Williamson sold 523 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, July 30th. The shares were sold at an average price of $204.65, for a total value of $107,031.95. Following the completion of the sale, the insider directly owned 5,423 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,109,816.95. This represents a 8.80% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, SVP Matthew R. Broad sold 5,661 shares of the stock in a transaction on Monday, October 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $193.40, for a total transaction of $1,094,837.40. Following the transaction, the senior vice president directly owned 13,916 shares in the company, valued at $2,691,354.40. The trade was a 28.92% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last ninety days, insiders sold 7,674 shares of company stock valued at $1,507,575. 0.49% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Darden Restaurants Stock Up 0.4%

Shares of Darden Restaurants stock opened at $188.16 on Friday. The firm has a market cap of $21.88 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 20.17, a P/E/G ratio of 1.72 and a beta of 0.77. The stock has a 50-day simple moving average of $199.61 and a 200-day simple moving average of $204.91. Darden Restaurants, Inc. has a 52-week low of $157.89 and a 52-week high of $228.27. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.96, a current ratio of 0.40 and a quick ratio of 0.27.

Darden Restaurants (NYSE:DRI) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, September 18th. The restaurant operator reported $1.97 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.01 by ($0.04). The firm had revenue of $3.04 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.03 billion. Darden Restaurants had a return on equity of 52.35% and a net margin of 8.90%.The company’s quarterly revenue was up 10.4% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company posted $1.75 EPS. Darden Restaurants has set its FY 2026 guidance at 10.500-10.700 EPS. On average, equities research analysts expect that Darden Restaurants, Inc. will post 9.52 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Darden Restaurants announced that its Board of Directors has initiated a share repurchase program on Friday, June 20th that authorizes the company to buyback $1.00 billion in shares. This buyback authorization authorizes the restaurant operator to reacquire up to 3.8% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback programs are typically a sign that the company’s leadership believes its shares are undervalued.

Darden Restaurants Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, November 3rd. Investors of record on Friday, October 10th will be paid a $1.50 dividend. This represents a $6.00 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.2%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, October 10th. Darden Restaurants’s payout ratio is presently 64.31%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several brokerages recently issued reports on DRI. BMO Capital Markets reduced their price objective on Darden Restaurants from $215.00 to $205.00 and set a “market perform” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, September 19th. Weiss Ratings reiterated a “buy (b)” rating on shares of Darden Restaurants in a report on Wednesday, October 8th. Citigroup boosted their price objective on shares of Darden Restaurants from $245.00 to $253.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, June 23rd. Melius Research upgraded shares of Darden Restaurants to a “hold” rating in a research report on Monday, July 14th. Finally, Bank of America boosted their price target on shares of Darden Restaurants from $253.00 to $254.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, September 16th. Nineteen research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and ten have issued a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $225.59.

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.