Burke & Herbert Bank & Trust Co. Takes Position in Darden Restaurants, Inc. (NYSE:DRI)

Burke & Herbert Bank & Trust Co. purchased a new position in shares of Darden Restaurants, Inc. (NYSE:DRI) during the 2nd quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The firm purchased 2,259 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock, valued at approximately $342,000.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Allworth Financial LP lifted its holdings in shares of Darden Restaurants by 65.6% in the 4th quarter. Allworth Financial LP now owns 265 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock valued at $44,000 after purchasing an additional 105 shares during the last quarter. Stratos Wealth Partners LTD. acquired a new stake in shares of Darden Restaurants in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $239,000. International Assets Investment Management LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Darden Restaurants in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $17,202,000. Sequoia Financial Advisors LLC purchased a new position in shares of Darden Restaurants during the fourth quarter worth approximately $298,000. Finally, Cerity Partners LLC increased its holdings in shares of Darden Restaurants by 99.2% in the 4th quarter. Cerity Partners LLC now owns 6,467 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock valued at $1,063,000 after acquiring an additional 3,221 shares during the period. 93.64% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Transactions at Darden Restaurants

In related news, SVP Sarah H. King sold 15,941 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, July 30th. The shares were sold at an average price of $147.06, for a total value of $2,344,283.46. Following the sale, the senior vice president now directly owns 447 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $65,735.82. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. In other news, insider Melvin John Martin sold 2,500 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, July 25th. The stock was sold at an average price of $141.09, for a total value of $352,725.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now directly owns 11,691 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,649,483.19. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, SVP Sarah H. King sold 15,941 shares of the stock in a transaction on Tuesday, July 30th. The shares were sold at an average price of $147.06, for a total value of $2,344,283.46. Following the sale, the senior vice president now directly owns 447 shares in the company, valued at approximately $65,735.82. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Corporate insiders own 0.85% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research analysts have issued reports on the stock. Stifel Nicolaus lowered their price objective on shares of Darden Restaurants from $190.00 to $180.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, June 21st. Morgan Stanley reissued an “overweight” rating and set a $175.00 price target on shares of Darden Restaurants in a report on Friday, June 21st. Citigroup upped their price objective on Darden Restaurants from $191.00 to $192.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, June 21st. KeyCorp lowered their target price on Darden Restaurants from $177.00 to $170.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, June 13th. Finally, Piper Sandler cut their price target on Darden Restaurants from $163.00 to $159.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research note on Monday, July 22nd. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, six have assigned a hold rating and sixteen have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $170.95.

Darden Restaurants Trading Up 1.5 %

Shares of DRI opened at $144.20 on Wednesday. Darden Restaurants, Inc. has a twelve month low of $133.36 and a twelve month high of $176.84. The company has a current ratio of 0.38, a quick ratio of 0.24 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.61. The firm has a market capitalization of $17.21 billion, a P/E ratio of 16.92, a PEG ratio of 1.62 and a beta of 1.29. The firm’s 50-day moving average is $146.23 and its two-hundred day moving average is $155.25.

Darden Restaurants (NYSE:DRI) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, June 20th. The restaurant operator reported $2.65 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.61 by $0.04. Darden Restaurants had a return on equity of 49.82% and a net margin of 9.02%. The business had revenue of $3 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.97 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company earned $2.58 EPS. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 8.3% on a year-over-year basis. On average, research analysts predict that Darden Restaurants, Inc. will post 9.48 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Darden Restaurants Cuts Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, August 15th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, July 11th will be given a $1.29 dividend. This represents a $5.16 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.58%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, July 10th. Darden Restaurants’s dividend payout ratio is currently 65.73%.

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.