Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. acquired a new position in shares of Darden Restaurants, Inc. (NYSE:DRI – Free Report) in the third quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor acquired 137,346 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock, valued at approximately $26,542,000. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. owned approximately 0.12% of Darden Restaurants at the end of the most recent reporting period.
Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also added to or reduced their stakes in DRI. SFE Investment Counsel grew its stake in shares of Darden Restaurants by 1.1% during the third quarter. SFE Investment Counsel now owns 5,725 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock worth $1,106,000 after buying an additional 60 shares during the last quarter. Vise Technologies Inc. lifted its stake in shares of Darden Restaurants by 35.6% in the 3rd quarter. Vise Technologies Inc. now owns 12,360 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock valued at $2,389,000 after acquiring an additional 3,248 shares during the last quarter. Cidel Asset Management Inc. lifted its stake in shares of Darden Restaurants by 66.8% in the 3rd quarter. Cidel Asset Management Inc. now owns 107,146 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock valued at $20,706,000 after acquiring an additional 42,907 shares during the last quarter. Moss Adams Wealth Advisors LLC bought a new position in shares of Darden Restaurants in the 3rd quarter valued at $248,000. Finally, Invera Wealth Advisors LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Darden Restaurants by 2.8% during the 3rd quarter. Invera Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 5,131 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock valued at $992,000 after acquiring an additional 142 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 93.64% of the company’s stock.
Analyst Ratings Changes
Several equities research analysts recently weighed in on the company. UBS Group reissued a “buy” rating on shares of Darden Restaurants in a report on Friday, September 11th. Robert W. Baird raised Darden Restaurants from a “neutral” rating to an “outperform” rating and upped their target price for the stock from $220.00 to $250.00 in a report on Monday, August 24th. BTIG Research reiterated a “buy” rating and issued a $235.00 target price on shares of Darden Restaurants in a research report on Friday, September 25th. Seaport Research Partners started coverage on Darden Restaurants in a research note on Wednesday, September 16th. They set a “buy” rating and a $240.00 price target on the stock. Finally, Oppenheimer lifted their price target on Darden Restaurants from $235.00 to $245.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Tuesday, September 15th. Sixteen research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and nine have given a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Darden Restaurants currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $232.82.
Check Out Our Latest Report on Darden Restaurants
Darden Restaurants Trading Up 1.3%
Shares of NYSE DRI opened at $222.98 on Tuesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.79, a quick ratio of 0.20 and a current ratio of 0.30. Darden Restaurants, Inc. has a 52-week low of $169.00 and a 52-week high of $229.76. The firm has a 50 day moving average price of $210.63 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $205.96. The stock has a market cap of $25.23 billion, a P/E ratio of 21.80, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.03 and a beta of 0.63.
Darden Restaurants (NYSE:DRI – Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, September 24th. The restaurant operator reported $2.05 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, meeting the consensus estimate of $2.05. Darden Restaurants had a net margin of 8.85% and a return on equity of 58.64%. The firm had revenue of $3.20 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $3.21 billion. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $1.97 earnings per share. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 5.1% on a year-over-year basis. Darden Restaurants has set its FY 2027 guidance at 11.100-11.350 EPS. As a group, equities analysts forecast that Darden Restaurants, Inc. will post 11.24 EPS for the current year.
Darden Restaurants Announces Dividend
The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, November 2nd. Investors of record on Friday, October 9th were given a dividend of $1.62 per share. This represents a $6.48 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.9%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, October 9th. Darden Restaurants’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 63.34%.
Insider Transactions at Darden Restaurants
In related news, insider John Wilkerson sold 8,864 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, August 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $208.33, for a total transaction of $1,846,637.12. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider directly owned 18,794 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $3,915,354.02. This trade represents a 32.05% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. 0.67% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.
Darden Restaurants Profile
Darden Restaurants, Inc is a full-service restaurant company that owns and operates a portfolio of dining brands in the United States. Its restaurants offer a range of cuisines and dining formats, including Italian-American, steakhouse, seafood, casual dining and polished casual concepts.
The company’s portfolio includes Olive Garden, LongHorn Steakhouse, Cheddar’s Scratch Kitchen, Yard House, Ruth’s Chris Steak House, The Capital Grille, Seasons 52, Bahama Breeze and Eddie V’s. These brands serve meals prepared for on-premises dining, as well as takeout and other off-premises occasions.
Darden traces its history to 1968, when founder William “Bill” Darden opened the first Red Lobster restaurant in Lakeland, Florida.
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