Bangor Savings Bank Grows Stock Holdings in Darden Restaurants, Inc. (NYSE:DRI)

Bangor Savings Bank boosted its holdings in Darden Restaurants, Inc. (NYSE:DRI) by 395.0% in the third quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 297 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock after buying an additional 237 shares during the period. Bangor Savings Bank’s holdings in Darden Restaurants were worth $49,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Other hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of the company. Fulton Bank N.A. boosted its holdings in Darden Restaurants by 0.5% in the 3rd quarter. Fulton Bank N.A. now owns 25,385 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock valued at $4,166,000 after purchasing an additional 116 shares during the period. Czech National Bank boosted its holdings in Darden Restaurants by 6.1% in the 3rd quarter. Czech National Bank now owns 24,132 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock valued at $3,961,000 after purchasing an additional 1,388 shares during the period. Cullen Investment Group LTD. boosted its holdings in Darden Restaurants by 1.6% in the 3rd quarter. Cullen Investment Group LTD. now owns 30,616 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock valued at $5,025,000 after purchasing an additional 488 shares during the period. SG Americas Securities LLC boosted its holdings in Darden Restaurants by 523.9% in the 3rd quarter. SG Americas Securities LLC now owns 194,937 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock valued at $31,995,000 after purchasing an additional 163,693 shares during the period. Finally, M&R Capital Management Inc. bought a new position in Darden Restaurants in the 3rd quarter valued at $219,000. 93.64% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Activity at Darden Restaurants

In related news, insider Melvin John Martin sold 2,500 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, July 25th. The shares were sold at an average price of $141.09, for a total transaction of $352,725.00. Following the transaction, the insider now 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 sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. In related news, insider Melvin John Martin sold 2,500 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, July 25th. The shares were sold at an average price of $141.09, for a total transaction of $352,725.00. Following the sale, the insider now owns 11,691 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,649,483.19. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, SVP Douglas J. Milanes sold 5,705 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, September 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $172.04, for a total transaction of $981,488.20. Following the sale, the senior vice president now directly owns 3,834 shares in the company, valued at $659,601.36. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 77,706 shares of company stock worth $12,813,038 over the last 90 days. 0.85% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Darden Restaurants Price Performance

DRI stock opened at $159.13 on Wednesday. The firm’s 50-day moving average price is $156.07 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $152.66. Darden Restaurants, Inc. has a 12-month low of $133.36 and a 12-month high of $176.84. The stock has a market capitalization of $18.99 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 18.68, a PEG ratio of 1.99 and a beta of 1.30. The company has a current ratio of 0.35, a quick ratio of 0.22 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.65.

Darden Restaurants (NYSE:DRI) last released its quarterly earnings data 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). Darden Restaurants had a net margin of 9.11% and a return on equity of 49.46%. The firm had revenue of $2.76 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $2.80 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $1.78 EPS. Darden Restaurants’s revenue was up 1.0% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, equities analysts predict that Darden Restaurants, Inc. will post 9.48 earnings per share for the current year.

Darden Restaurants Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, November 1st. Investors of record on Thursday, October 10th will be given a dividend of $1.40 per share. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, October 10th. This represents a $5.60 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.52%. This is a boost from Darden Restaurants’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.29. Darden Restaurants’s payout ratio is currently 65.73%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research analysts have commented on the stock. BMO Capital Markets raised their price target on shares of Darden Restaurants from $165.00 to $175.00 and gave the company a “market perform” rating in a report on Friday, September 20th. UBS Group lifted their price objective on shares of Darden Restaurants from $188.00 to $195.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, September 20th. Raymond James reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and set a $160.00 price objective on shares of Darden Restaurants in a report on Tuesday, August 20th. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their price objective on shares of Darden Restaurants from $160.00 to $165.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a report on Friday, September 20th. Finally, TD Cowen reaffirmed a “hold” rating and set a $150.00 price objective on shares of Darden Restaurants in a report on Thursday, September 19th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have assigned a hold rating and seventeen have assigned a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Darden Restaurants presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $179.25.

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.