Insider Selling: Darden Restaurants, Inc. (NYSE:DRI) Insider Sells $334,460.00 in Stock

Darden Restaurants, Inc. (NYSE:DRI) insider Melvin John Martin sold 2,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, September 27th. The stock was sold at an average price of $167.23, for a total transaction of $334,460.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now owns 15,562 shares in the company, valued at $2,602,433.26. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink.

Melvin John Martin also recently made the following trade(s):

• On Thursday, July 25th, Melvin John Martin sold 2,500 shares of Darden Restaurants stock. The stock was sold at an average price of $141.09, for a total transaction of $352,725.00.

Darden Restaurants Stock Performance

DRI opened at $162.70 on Thursday. Darden Restaurants, Inc. has a 12-month low of $133.36 and a 12-month high of $176.84. 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 market capitalization of $19.42 billion, a PE ratio of 19.10, a P/E/G ratio of 1.99 and a beta of 1.30. The firm has a 50 day moving average of $154.74 and a two-hundred day moving average of $153.02.

Darden Restaurants (NYSE:DRI) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, September 19th. The restaurant operator reported $1.75 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.83 by ($0.08). Darden Restaurants had a return on equity of 49.46% and a net margin of 9.11%. The business had revenue of $2.76 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $2.80 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $1.78 earnings per share. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 1.0% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, analysts anticipate that Darden Restaurants, Inc. will post 9.48 EPS for the current year.

Darden Restaurants Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, November 1st. Shareholders of record on Thursday, October 10th will be given a dividend of $1.40 per share. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, October 10th. This is a positive change from Darden Restaurants’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.29. This represents a $5.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.44%. Darden Restaurants’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 65.73%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

DRI has been the topic of several recent research reports. Citigroup dropped their target price on shares of Darden Restaurants from $192.00 to $191.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, September 10th. Truist Financial increased their target price 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. Sanford C. Bernstein cut shares of Darden Restaurants from an “outperform” rating to a “market perform” rating and dropped their target price for the stock from $190.00 to $180.00 in a report on Friday, September 20th. BMO Capital Markets increased their target price on shares of Darden Restaurants from $165.00 to $175.00 and gave the stock a “market perform” rating in a report on Friday, September 20th. Finally, Stephens increased their price target on shares of Darden Restaurants from $159.00 to $164.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Friday, September 20th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have given a hold rating and seventeen have given a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, Darden Restaurants currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $179.25.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Darden Restaurants

A number of institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of DRI. Rise Advisors LLC grew its stake in shares of Darden Restaurants by 131.3% during the 1st quarter. Rise Advisors LLC now owns 155 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock worth $26,000 after purchasing an additional 88 shares during the period. ESL Trust Services LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Darden Restaurants during the 1st quarter worth approximately $27,000. Meeder Asset Management Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Darden Restaurants during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $27,000. Kimelman & Baird LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Darden Restaurants during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $30,000. Finally, Innealta Capital LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Darden Restaurants during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $31,000. 93.64% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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.