Stock Yards Bank & Trust Co. Sells 450 Shares of Darden Restaurants, Inc. (NYSE:DRI)

Stock Yards Bank & Trust Co. lessened its position in shares of Darden Restaurants, Inc. (NYSE:DRI) by 16.0% during the second quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The institutional investor owned 2,357 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock after selling 450 shares during the quarter. Stock Yards Bank & Trust Co.’s holdings in Darden Restaurants were worth $357,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in DRI. Union Savings Bank raised its stake in Darden Restaurants by 44.0% in the 4th quarter. Union Savings Bank now owns 216 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock valued at $35,000 after acquiring an additional 66 shares during the period. Cornerstone Wealth Group LLC increased its stake in shares of Darden Restaurants by 0.4% in the first quarter. Cornerstone Wealth Group LLC now owns 16,550 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock worth $2,766,000 after purchasing an additional 66 shares in the last quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC raised its position in shares of Darden Restaurants by 34.8% in the first quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 279 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock valued at $43,000 after purchasing an additional 72 shares during the period. GW Henssler & Associates Ltd. raised its position in shares of Darden Restaurants by 4.9% in the first quarter. GW Henssler & Associates Ltd. now owns 1,640 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock valued at $274,000 after purchasing an additional 77 shares during the period. Finally, United Community Bank lifted its stake in shares of Darden Restaurants by 1.3% during the 1st quarter. United Community Bank now owns 5,918 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock valued at $989,000 after buying an additional 78 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 93.64% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research analysts recently weighed in on DRI shares. Argus reduced their price objective on shares of Darden Restaurants from $186.00 to $175.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, June 25th. Raymond James reiterated an “outperform” rating and set a $160.00 price objective on shares of Darden Restaurants in a research note on Tuesday, August 20th. KeyCorp cut their target price on Darden Restaurants from $177.00 to $170.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, June 13th. Citigroup decreased their price target on Darden Restaurants from $192.00 to $191.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, September 10th. Finally, Wedbush restated an “outperform” rating and issued a $170.00 price objective on shares of Darden Restaurants in a research report on Tuesday, September 10th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, six have assigned a hold rating and sixteen have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $170.18.

Darden Restaurants Trading Up 0.9 %

NYSE DRI opened at $161.54 on Wednesday. The company has a quick ratio of 0.24, a current ratio of 0.38 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.61. The stock’s 50-day simple moving average is $148.84 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $153.41. Darden Restaurants, Inc. has a twelve month low of $133.36 and a twelve month high of $176.84. The company has a market capitalization of $19.28 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 18.96, a PEG ratio of 1.76 and a beta of 1.30.

Darden Restaurants (NYSE:DRI) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, June 20th. The restaurant operator reported $2.65 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.61 by $0.04. The company had revenue of $3 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $2.97 billion. Darden Restaurants had a return on equity of 49.82% and a net margin of 9.02%. Darden Restaurants’s revenue for the quarter was up 8.3% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the firm posted $2.58 EPS. Research analysts forecast that Darden Restaurants, Inc. will post 9.47 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Darden Restaurants Cuts Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, August 15th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, July 11th were issued a $1.29 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, July 10th. This represents a $5.16 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.19%. Darden Restaurants’s payout ratio is 65.73%.

Insider Activity

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

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.