Darden Restaurants, Inc. (NYSE:DRI) Shares Sold by National Pension Service

National Pension Service trimmed its position in Darden Restaurants, Inc. (NYSE:DRI) by 2.9% during the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 200,260 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock after selling 5,990 shares during the period. National Pension Service’s holdings in Darden Restaurants were worth $32,869,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. ESL Trust Services LLC acquired a new position in shares of Darden Restaurants in the first quarter valued at about $27,000. Meeder Asset Management Inc. acquired a new stake in Darden Restaurants during the 2nd quarter worth about $27,000. Kimelman & Baird LLC purchased a new position in shares of Darden Restaurants during the 2nd quarter valued at about $30,000. Innealta Capital LLC purchased a new position in shares of Darden Restaurants during the 2nd quarter valued at about $31,000. Finally, Wolff Wiese Magana LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Darden Restaurants by 1,690.9% in the 3rd quarter. Wolff Wiese Magana LLC now owns 197 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock valued at $32,000 after buying an additional 186 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 93.64% of the company’s stock.

Darden Restaurants Stock Down 1.4 %

DRI stock opened at $168.48 on Friday. The company has a current ratio of 0.35, a quick ratio of 0.22 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.65. The firm has a 50-day moving average of $161.95 and a two-hundred day moving average of $153.12. Darden Restaurants, Inc. has a 12 month low of $135.87 and a 12 month high of $176.84. The company has a market cap of $19.80 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 19.43, a PEG ratio of 1.83 and a beta of 1.31.

Darden Restaurants (NYSE:DRI) last posted its quarterly 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). The company had revenue of $2.76 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.80 billion. Darden Restaurants had a net margin of 9.11% and a return on equity of 49.46%. Darden Restaurants’s revenue for the quarter was up 1.0% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $1.78 EPS. As a group, analysts forecast that Darden Restaurants, Inc. will post 9.47 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Darden Restaurants Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, November 1st. Investors of record on Thursday, October 10th were given a dividend of $1.40 per share. This is a boost from Darden Restaurants’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.29. This represents a $5.60 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.32%. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, October 10th. Darden Restaurants’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 64.59%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

DRI has been the subject of several recent research reports. UBS Group lifted their price target on Darden Restaurants from $188.00 to $195.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, September 20th. KeyCorp lifted their target price on shares of Darden Restaurants from $170.00 to $194.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, September 20th. Evercore ISI raised shares of Darden Restaurants from an “in-line” rating to an “outperform” rating and increased their price target for the stock from $165.00 to $205.00 in a report on Friday, September 20th. Truist Financial raised their price target on shares of Darden Restaurants from $185.00 to $195.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, September 20th. Finally, TD Cowen reiterated a “hold” rating and issued a $150.00 price objective on shares of Darden Restaurants in a research report on Thursday, September 19th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have given a hold rating and sixteen have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $180.13.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, insider Melvin John Martin sold 3,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, October 4th. The shares were sold at an average price of $163.30, for a total transaction of $489,900.00. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now owns 12,601 shares in the company, valued at $2,057,743.30. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. In other news, insider Melvin John Martin sold 3,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Friday, October 4th. The stock was sold at an average price of $163.30, for a total transaction of $489,900.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now directly owns 12,601 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,057,743.30. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, SVP Douglas J. Milanes sold 5,705 shares of the business’s 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 $659,601.36. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 59,265 shares of company stock valued at $10,116,030 over the last ninety days. Company insiders own 0.58% of the company’s stock.

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.