State of Michigan Retirement System Has $5.47 Million Stake in Darden Restaurants, Inc. (NYSE:DRI)

State of Michigan Retirement System reduced its position in shares of Darden Restaurants, Inc. (NYSE:DRI) by 0.6% in the 1st quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The firm owned 32,712 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock after selling 200 shares during the quarter. State of Michigan Retirement System’s holdings in Darden Restaurants were worth $5,468,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Several other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in DRI. Rise Advisors LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Darden Restaurants by 131.3% during the first quarter. Rise Advisors LLC now owns 155 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock worth $26,000 after buying an additional 88 shares in the last quarter. Fortitude Family Office LLC bought a new position in Darden Restaurants during the fourth quarter worth about $29,000. Hartford Financial Management Inc. raised its stake in Darden Restaurants by 65.1% in the 4th quarter. Hartford Financial Management Inc. now owns 180 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock worth $30,000 after purchasing an additional 71 shares in the last quarter. Tennessee Valley Asset Management Partners acquired a new position in shares of Darden Restaurants during the 4th quarter worth approximately $33,000. Finally, McGlone Suttner Wealth Management Inc. acquired a new stake in Darden Restaurants during the fourth quarter worth approximately $35,000. 93.64% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

DRI has been the topic of several analyst reports. BMO Capital Markets increased their target price on Darden Restaurants from $160.00 to $165.00 and gave the stock a “market perform” rating in a report on Thursday, March 7th. Guggenheim boosted their target price on shares of Darden Restaurants from $180.00 to $185.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, March 19th. Bank of America lifted their price objective on shares of Darden Restaurants from $180.00 to $185.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, June 21st. Citigroup upped their target price on Darden Restaurants from $191.00 to $192.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, June 21st. Finally, KeyCorp decreased their price target on Darden Restaurants from $177.00 to $170.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, June 13th. Five equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seventeen have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $174.24.

Insider Buying and Selling at Darden Restaurants

In other news, Director William S. Simon sold 1,219 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Monday, April 8th. The stock was sold at an average price of $158.21, for a total value of $192,857.99. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now directly owns 6,281 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $993,717.01. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. In other Darden Restaurants news, SVP Matthew R. Broad sold 4,707 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, April 25th. The stock was sold at an average price of $156.15, for a total value of $734,998.05. Following the transaction, the senior vice president now directly owns 19,179 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,994,800.85. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, Director William S. Simon sold 1,219 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, April 8th. The stock was sold at an average price of $158.21, for a total transaction of $192,857.99. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now owns 6,281 shares in the company, valued at $993,717.01. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders own 0.85% of the company’s stock.

Darden Restaurants Stock Down 1.1 %

Shares of NYSE:DRI opened at $146.77 on Wednesday. Darden Restaurants, Inc. has a 1 year low of $133.36 and a 1 year high of $176.84. The company has a market capitalization of $17.52 billion, a PE ratio of 17.23, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.73 and a beta of 1.29. The business has a fifty day moving average price of $150.32 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $159.11. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.61, a current ratio of 0.38 and a quick ratio of 0.24.

Darden Restaurants (NYSE:DRI) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, June 20th. The restaurant operator reported $2.65 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.61 by $0.04. The firm had revenue of $3 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $2.97 billion. Darden Restaurants had a return on equity of 49.82% and a net margin of 9.02%. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 8.3% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $2.58 EPS. Analysts forecast that Darden Restaurants, Inc. will post 9.5 earnings per share for the current year.

Darden Restaurants Cuts Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, August 15th. Investors of record on Thursday, July 11th will be paid a $1.29 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, July 10th. This represents a $5.16 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.52%. Darden Restaurants’s dividend payout ratio is 61.50%.

Darden Restaurants announced that its Board of Directors has initiated a stock buyback program on Thursday, March 21st that permits the company to buyback $1.00 billion in shares. This buyback authorization permits the restaurant operator to reacquire up to 5% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback programs are usually an indication that the company’s leadership believes its stock is undervalued.

Darden Restaurants Company 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.