Exchange Traded Concepts LLC Purchases New Holdings in Darden Restaurants, Inc. (NYSE:DRI)

Exchange Traded Concepts LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Darden Restaurants, Inc. (NYSE:DRI) in the third quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm purchased 3,781 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock, valued at approximately $621,000.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of DRI. Burns Matteson Capital Management LLC bought a new position in Darden Restaurants during the third quarter valued at $354,000. Livforsakringsbolaget Skandia Omsesidigt grew its holdings in Darden Restaurants by 24.5% during the third quarter. Livforsakringsbolaget Skandia Omsesidigt now owns 11,181 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock valued at $1,834,000 after purchasing an additional 2,200 shares during the period. Virginia Wealth Management Group Inc. grew its holdings in Darden Restaurants by 25.0% during the third quarter. Virginia Wealth Management Group Inc. now owns 26,219 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock valued at $4,303,000 after purchasing an additional 5,247 shares during the period. CWM LLC grew its holdings in Darden Restaurants by 34.4% during the third quarter. CWM LLC now owns 3,975 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock valued at $652,000 after purchasing an additional 1,018 shares during the period. Finally, Saxon Interests Inc. grew its holdings in Darden Restaurants by 3.2% during the third quarter. Saxon Interests Inc. now owns 4,327 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock valued at $710,000 after purchasing an additional 136 shares during the period. 93.64% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Darden Restaurants Trading Up 0.2 %

NYSE DRI opened at $164.59 on Friday. The stock’s 50-day simple moving average is $158.67 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $152.52. Darden Restaurants, Inc. has a twelve month low of $135.87 and a twelve month high of $176.84. The company has a quick ratio of 0.22, a current ratio of 0.35 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.65. The company has a market capitalization of $19.65 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 19.32, a PEG ratio of 1.83 and a beta of 1.30.

Darden Restaurants (NYSE:DRI) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, September 19th. The restaurant operator reported $1.75 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.83 by ($0.08). The firm had revenue of $2.76 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $2.80 billion. Darden Restaurants had a net margin of 9.11% and a return on equity of 49.46%. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 1.0% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned $1.78 EPS. Research analysts forecast that Darden Restaurants, Inc. will post 9.47 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Darden Restaurants Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, November 1st. Stockholders of record on Thursday, October 10th will be issued a $1.40 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, October 10th. This represents a $5.60 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.40%. This is an increase from Darden Restaurants’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.29. Darden Restaurants’s payout ratio is currently 65.73%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

DRI has been the subject of several research reports. Wells Fargo & Company increased their price objective on Darden Restaurants from $160.00 to $165.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Friday, September 20th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their price objective on Darden Restaurants from $165.00 to $176.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, September 20th. Bank of America raised their price target on Darden Restaurants from $184.00 to $195.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, September 20th. Stephens reaffirmed an “equal weight” rating and issued a $164.00 price target on shares of Darden Restaurants in a report on Monday, October 14th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group lowered Darden Restaurants from a “hold” rating to an “underperform” rating and cut their price target for the stock from $154.00 to $124.00 in a report on Thursday, July 11th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have assigned a hold rating and seventeen have given a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $179.25.

Insider Transactions at Darden Restaurants

In other news, SVP Sarah H. King sold 15,941 shares of Darden Restaurants stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, July 30th. The stock was sold at an average price of $147.06, for a total value of $2,344,283.46. Following the transaction, the senior vice president now owns 447 shares in the company, valued at approximately $65,735.82. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. In related news, SVP Sarah H. King sold 15,941 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, July 30th. The stock was sold at an average price of $147.06, for a total value of $2,344,283.46. Following the sale, the senior vice president now directly owns 447 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $65,735.82. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Also, insider Melvin John Martin sold 2,500 shares of the firm’s 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 completion of the sale, the insider now directly owns 11,691 shares in the company, valued at $1,649,483.19. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last quarter, insiders have sold 77,706 shares of company stock worth $12,813,038. Company insiders own 0.85% of the company’s stock.

Darden Restaurants 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.