CIBC Asset Management Inc Raises Stock Holdings in Darden Restaurants, Inc. (NYSE:DRI)

CIBC Asset Management Inc lifted its holdings in shares of Darden Restaurants, Inc. (NYSE:DRI) by 6.6% during the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 20,276 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock after acquiring an additional 1,250 shares during the period. CIBC Asset Management Inc’s holdings in Darden Restaurants were worth $3,328,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of the business. Meeder Asset Management Inc. purchased a new position in Darden Restaurants during the 2nd quarter worth $27,000. Kimelman & Baird LLC purchased a new position in shares of Darden Restaurants during the second quarter worth about $30,000. Innealta Capital LLC acquired a new position in Darden Restaurants in the 2nd quarter valued at about $31,000. Wolff Wiese Magana LLC raised its stake in Darden Restaurants by 1,690.9% during the 3rd quarter. Wolff Wiese Magana LLC now owns 197 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock valued at $32,000 after acquiring an additional 186 shares during the last quarter. Finally, EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC lifted its position in Darden Restaurants by 34.8% during the 1st quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 279 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock worth $43,000 after acquiring an additional 72 shares during the period. 93.64% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research firms have recently commented on DRI. BTIG Research upped their price target on Darden Restaurants from $175.00 to $195.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note 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 research report on Friday, September 20th. Evercore ISI raised shares of Darden Restaurants from an “in-line” rating to an “outperform” rating and lifted their target price for the company from $165.00 to $205.00 in a report on Friday, September 20th. Truist Financial increased their price target on shares of Darden Restaurants from $185.00 to $195.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, September 20th. Finally, KeyCorp lifted their price objective on Darden Restaurants from $170.00 to $194.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, September 20th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have issued a hold rating and sixteen have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $180.13.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Darden Restaurants news, SVP Douglas J. Milanes sold 5,705 shares of Darden Restaurants stock in a transaction on Monday, September 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $172.04, for a total value of $981,488.20. Following the transaction, the senior vice president now owns 3,834 shares in the company, valued at $659,601.36. This trade represents a 59.81 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Also, CEO Ricardo Cardenas sold 42,403 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Monday, September 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $171.68, for a total value of $7,279,747.04. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 58,685 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $10,075,040.80. The trade was a 41.95 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last ninety days, insiders have sold 59,265 shares of company stock worth $10,116,030. 0.58% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Darden Restaurants Price Performance

NYSE:DRI opened at $164.45 on Tuesday. Darden Restaurants, Inc. has a 12-month low of $135.87 and a 12-month high of $176.84. The firm has a market cap of $19.32 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 18.97, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.92 and a beta of 1.31. The company’s 50-day moving average is $163.32 and its two-hundred day moving average is $153.77. 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 announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, September 19th. The restaurant operator reported $1.75 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate 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 business’s quarterly revenue was up 1.0% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $1.78 EPS. Research analysts expect that Darden Restaurants, Inc. will post 9.47 EPS for the current year.

Darden Restaurants Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, November 1st. Investors of record on Thursday, October 10th were paid a $1.40 dividend. This is a positive change from Darden Restaurants’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.29. This represents a $5.60 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.41%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, October 10th. Darden Restaurants’s dividend payout ratio is presently 64.59%.

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.