Principal Financial Group Inc. Grows Stock Holdings in Darden Restaurants, Inc. (NYSE:DRI)

Principal Financial Group Inc. lifted its position in shares of Darden Restaurants, Inc. (NYSE:DRI) by 4.0% in the third quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The firm owned 151,293 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock after purchasing an additional 5,816 shares during the period. Principal Financial Group Inc.’s holdings in Darden Restaurants were worth $24,832,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other large investors also recently modified their holdings of the business. Raymond James & Associates lifted its holdings in Darden Restaurants by 1.9% in the 3rd quarter. Raymond James & Associates now owns 2,352,608 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock worth $386,133,000 after buying an additional 44,464 shares during the period. Earnest Partners LLC increased its position in Darden Restaurants by 1.2% during the 2nd quarter. Earnest Partners LLC now owns 1,591,541 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock valued at $240,832,000 after purchasing an additional 18,899 shares during the period. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP raised its holdings in Darden Restaurants by 13.1% in the 2nd 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 position in shares of Darden Restaurants by 2.7% in the 2nd 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 during the period. Finally, Steadfast Capital Management LP boosted its stake in shares of Darden Restaurants by 10.0% during the 1st quarter. Steadfast Capital Management LP now owns 933,000 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock valued at $155,951,000 after purchasing an additional 85,000 shares in the last quarter. 93.64% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Darden Restaurants Stock Down 1.3 %

Shares of DRI stock opened at $167.07 on Wednesday. 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, Inc. has a 12 month low of $135.87 and a 12 month high of $176.84. The stock has a market cap of $19.63 billion, a P/E ratio of 19.27, a P/E/G ratio of 1.94 and a beta of 1.31. The company has a 50 day simple moving average of $162.56 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $153.34.

Darden Restaurants (NYSE:DRI) last posted its quarterly earnings data 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 analysts’ expectations of $2.80 billion. Darden Restaurants had a return on equity of 49.46% and a net margin of 9.11%. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 1.0% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $1.78 earnings per share. On average, research analysts expect that Darden Restaurants, Inc. will post 9.47 earnings per share for the current year.

Darden Restaurants Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, November 1st. Investors of record on Thursday, October 10th were paid a dividend of $1.40 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, October 10th. This is an increase from Darden Restaurants’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.29. This represents a $5.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.35%. Darden Restaurants’s payout ratio is 64.59%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Darden Restaurants news, insider Melvin John Martin sold 3,000 shares of the company’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 value of $489,900.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now directly owns 12,601 shares in the company, valued at $2,057,743.30. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. In related news, insider Laura B. Williamson sold 1,666 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, September 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $172.00, for a total value of $286,552.00. Following the transaction, the insider now directly owns 5,334 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $917,448. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, insider Melvin John Martin sold 3,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, October 4th. The stock was sold at an average price of $163.30, for a total value of $489,900.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now owns 12,601 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,057,743.30. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last ninety days, insiders sold 59,265 shares of company stock valued at $10,116,030. 0.58% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several analysts have weighed in on DRI shares. TD Cowen reaffirmed a “hold” rating and set a $150.00 price objective on shares of Darden Restaurants in a research report on Thursday, September 19th. BTIG Research lifted their price target on shares of Darden Restaurants from $175.00 to $195.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, September 20th. UBS Group upped 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. Piper Sandler lifted their target price on shares of Darden Restaurants from $159.00 to $177.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Friday, September 20th. Finally, Evercore ISI upgraded Darden Restaurants from an “in-line” rating to an “outperform” rating and upped their price target for the stock from $165.00 to $205.00 in a research note on Friday, September 20th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have given a hold rating and sixteen have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Darden Restaurants presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $180.13.

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.