Darden Restaurants (NYSE:DRI) PT Raised to $195.00

Darden Restaurants (NYSE:DRI) had its price target raised by analysts at BTIG Research from $175.00 to $195.00 in a research report issued to clients and investors on Friday, Benzinga reports. The firm presently has a “buy” rating on the restaurant operator’s stock. BTIG Research’s price target suggests a potential upside of 15.10% from the company’s previous close.

A number of other equities analysts have also recently issued reports on DRI. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their target price on Darden Restaurants from $165.00 to $176.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday. Barclays increased their price objective on Darden Restaurants from $180.00 to $192.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday. Citigroup lowered their price objective on shares of Darden Restaurants from $192.00 to $191.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, September 10th. Argus dropped their target price on shares of Darden Restaurants from $186.00 to $175.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, June 25th. Finally, Evercore ISI upgraded Darden Restaurants from an “in-line” rating to an “outperform” rating and lifted their price target for the stock from $165.00 to $205.00 in a report on Friday. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, six have assigned a hold rating and eighteen have given a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $179.88.

Darden Restaurants Trading Down 1.7 %

Darden Restaurants stock traded down $2.85 during midday trading on Friday, hitting $169.42. 892,915 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,226,596. The stock has a market capitalization of $20.22 billion, a PE ratio of 20.01, a P/E/G ratio of 1.76 and a beta of 1.30. The company has a fifty day simple moving average of $149.69 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $153.39. The company has a quick ratio of 0.24, a current ratio of 0.38 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.61. Darden Restaurants has a 52 week low of $133.36 and a 52 week high of $176.84.

Darden Restaurants (NYSE:DRI) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, September 19th. The restaurant operator reported $1.75 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.83 by ($0.08). Darden Restaurants had a return on equity of 49.82% and a net margin of 9.02%. The company had revenue of $2.76 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.80 billion. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $1.78 earnings per share. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 1.0% on a year-over-year basis. Equities research analysts anticipate that Darden Restaurants will post 9.47 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Transactions at Darden Restaurants

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

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Darden Restaurants

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the company. Westwood Holdings Group Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Darden Restaurants during the 1st quarter valued at $72,901,000. Norges Bank bought a new stake in Darden Restaurants in the fourth quarter valued at $58,601,000. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA raised its holdings in shares of Darden Restaurants by 71.3% during the second quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA now owns 696,176 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock valued at $105,345,000 after purchasing an additional 289,876 shares during the period. Toronto Dominion Bank boosted its position in shares of Darden Restaurants by 139.9% during the 2nd quarter. Toronto Dominion Bank now owns 352,344 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock worth $53,317,000 after purchasing an additional 205,450 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Hsbc Holdings PLC boosted its position in shares of Darden Restaurants by 81.2% during the 2nd quarter. Hsbc Holdings PLC now owns 457,114 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock worth $69,125,000 after purchasing an additional 204,832 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 93.64% of the company’s stock.

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.