Mediolanum International Funds Ltd Lowers Holdings in Darden Restaurants, Inc. (NYSE:DRI)

Mediolanum International Funds Ltd trimmed its holdings in Darden Restaurants, Inc. (NYSE:DRI) by 3.8% in the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The firm owned 9,678 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock after selling 382 shares during the period. Mediolanum International Funds Ltd’s holdings in Darden Restaurants were worth $1,611,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in DRI. Raymond James & Associates lifted its stake in Darden Restaurants by 1.9% during the third quarter. Raymond James & Associates now owns 2,352,608 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock worth $386,133,000 after purchasing an additional 44,464 shares in the last quarter. Earnest Partners LLC lifted its stake in Darden Restaurants by 1.2% during the second quarter. Earnest Partners LLC now owns 1,591,541 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock worth $240,832,000 after purchasing an additional 18,899 shares in the last quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP lifted its stake in Darden Restaurants by 13.1% during the second quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 1,141,974 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock worth $172,811,000 after purchasing an additional 132,643 shares in the last quarter. Raymond James Financial Services Advisors Inc. lifted its stake in Darden Restaurants by 2.7% during the second quarter. Raymond James Financial Services Advisors Inc. now owns 1,004,932 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock worth $152,066,000 after purchasing an additional 26,081 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Steadfast Capital Management LP lifted its stake in Darden Restaurants by 10.0% during the first quarter. Steadfast Capital Management LP now owns 933,000 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock worth $155,951,000 after purchasing an additional 85,000 shares in the last quarter. 93.64% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Activity at Darden Restaurants

In related news, Director Nana Mensah sold 1,171 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, September 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $171.90, for a total value of $201,294.90. Following the completion of the sale, the director now owns 10 shares in the company, valued at $1,719. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. In other news, SVP Douglas J. Milanes sold 5,705 shares of Darden Restaurants stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, September 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $172.04, for a total transaction of $981,488.20. Following the completion of the sale, the senior vice president now directly owns 3,834 shares in the company, valued at approximately $659,601.36. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, Director Nana Mensah sold 1,171 shares of Darden Restaurants stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, September 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $171.90, for a total transaction of $201,294.90. Following the sale, the director now owns 10 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,719. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 75,206 shares of company stock worth $12,460,313 over the last 90 days. Company insiders own 0.85% of the company’s stock.

Darden Restaurants Stock Performance

NYSE DRI opened at $159.92 on Monday. The company has a quick ratio of 0.22, a current ratio of 0.35 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.65. Darden Restaurants, Inc. has a 52-week low of $135.87 and a 52-week high of $176.84. The business’s 50-day moving average price is $160.58 and its 200 day moving average price is $152.53. The firm has a market cap of $19.09 billion, a P/E ratio of 18.77, a P/E/G 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 (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.83 by ($0.08). The company had revenue of $2.76 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $2.80 billion. Darden Restaurants had a return on equity of 49.46% and a net margin of 9.11%. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 1.0% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the business earned $1.78 EPS. On average, equities research analysts expect that Darden Restaurants, Inc. will post 9.47 earnings per share for the current year.

Darden Restaurants Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, November 1st. Investors of record on Thursday, October 10th will be given a $1.40 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, October 10th. This represents a $5.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.50%. This is an increase from Darden Restaurants’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.29. Darden Restaurants’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 65.73%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

DRI has been the topic of several analyst reports. TD Cowen reiterated a “hold” rating and issued a $150.00 price objective on shares of Darden Restaurants in a research note on Thursday, September 19th. KeyCorp increased their price objective on Darden Restaurants from $170.00 to $194.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday, September 20th. Piper Sandler increased their price objective on Darden Restaurants from $159.00 to $177.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Friday, September 20th. BTIG Research increased their price objective on Darden Restaurants from $175.00 to $195.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, September 20th. Finally, Morgan Stanley increased their target price on Darden Restaurants from $175.00 to $188.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, September 20th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have assigned a hold rating and sixteen have issued a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $180.13.

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.