Darden Restaurants, Inc. (NYSE:DRI) Shares Sold by Citizens Financial Group Inc. RI

Citizens Financial Group Inc. RI reduced its holdings in Darden Restaurants, Inc. (NYSE:DRI) by 79.8% during the second quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 9,889 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock after selling 39,023 shares during the quarter. Citizens Financial Group Inc. RI’s holdings in Darden Restaurants were worth $1,496,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also added to or reduced their stakes in DRI. Union Savings Bank boosted its position in shares of Darden Restaurants by 44.0% in the 4th quarter. Union Savings Bank now owns 216 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock valued at $35,000 after purchasing an additional 66 shares during the period. Cornerstone Wealth Group LLC increased its position in shares of Darden Restaurants by 0.4% in the first quarter. Cornerstone Wealth Group LLC now owns 16,550 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock worth $2,766,000 after acquiring an additional 66 shares in the last quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC raised its holdings in shares of Darden Restaurants by 34.8% during the first quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 279 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock valued at $43,000 after acquiring an additional 72 shares during the period. GW Henssler & Associates Ltd. lifted its position in shares of Darden Restaurants by 4.9% in the 1st quarter. GW Henssler & Associates Ltd. now owns 1,640 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock valued at $274,000 after acquiring an additional 77 shares in the last quarter. Finally, United Community Bank grew its position in Darden Restaurants by 1.3% during the 1st quarter. United Community Bank now owns 5,918 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock worth $989,000 after purchasing an additional 78 shares in the last quarter. 93.64% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, insider Melvin John Martin sold 2,500 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, July 25th. The shares were sold at an average price of $141.09, for a total value of $352,725.00. Following the sale, the insider now owns 11,691 shares in the company, valued at $1,649,483.19. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. In other news, SVP Sarah H. King sold 15,941 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, July 30th. The shares were sold at an average price of $147.06, for a total transaction of $2,344,283.46. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president now owns 447 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $65,735.82. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Also, insider Melvin John Martin sold 2,500 shares of Darden Restaurants stock in a transaction dated Thursday, July 25th. The stock was sold at an average price of $141.09, for a total value of $352,725.00. Following the sale, the insider now directly owns 11,691 shares in the company, valued at $1,649,483.19. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Company insiders own 0.85% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research firms have recently issued reports on DRI. Piper Sandler reduced their target price on Darden Restaurants from $163.00 to $159.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a report on Monday, July 22nd. Stifel Nicolaus lowered their target price on Darden Restaurants from $190.00 to $180.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, June 21st. Morgan Stanley reissued an “overweight” rating and issued a $175.00 price target on shares of Darden Restaurants in a research report on Friday, June 21st. KeyCorp lowered their price objective on shares of Darden Restaurants from $177.00 to $170.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, June 13th. Finally, TD Cowen reiterated a “hold” rating and issued a $150.00 target price on shares of Darden Restaurants in a research report on Thursday, September 12th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, six have issued a hold rating and sixteen have issued a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $170.18.

Darden Restaurants Trading Up 0.9 %

NYSE:DRI opened at $161.54 on Wednesday. The company has a quick ratio of 0.24, a current ratio of 0.38 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.61. The company’s 50 day moving average is $148.84 and its 200-day moving average is $153.41. The firm has a market cap of $19.28 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 18.96, a P/E/G ratio of 1.76 and a beta of 1.30. Darden Restaurants, Inc. has a 12 month low of $133.36 and a 12 month high of $176.84.

Darden Restaurants (NYSE:DRI) last released its earnings results on Thursday, June 20th. The restaurant operator reported $2.65 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.61 by $0.04. The firm had revenue of $3 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.97 billion. Darden Restaurants had a net margin of 9.02% and a return on equity of 49.82%. The business’s revenue was up 8.3% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned $2.58 EPS. Equities analysts anticipate that Darden Restaurants, Inc. will post 9.47 EPS for the current year.

Darden Restaurants Cuts Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, August 15th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, July 11th were issued a $1.29 dividend. This represents a $5.16 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.19%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, July 10th. Darden Restaurants’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 65.73%.

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.