Ashton Thomas Securities LLC Acquires Shares of 456 Darden Restaurants, Inc. (NYSE:DRI)

Ashton Thomas Securities LLC purchased a new stake in Darden Restaurants, Inc. (NYSE:DRI) during the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor purchased 456 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock, valued at approximately $75,000.

A number of other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of the stock. Westwood Holdings Group Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Darden Restaurants in the 1st quarter worth $72,901,000. International Assets Investment Management LLC grew its stake in shares of Darden Restaurants by 16,996.9% in the 3rd quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC now owns 377,500 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock worth $61,959,000 after purchasing an additional 375,292 shares during the last quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA grew its position in Darden Restaurants by 71.3% in the second quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA now owns 696,176 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock worth $105,345,000 after buying an additional 289,876 shares during the last quarter. Toronto Dominion Bank boosted its stake in shares of Darden Restaurants by 139.9% during the 2nd quarter. Toronto Dominion Bank now owns 352,344 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock worth $53,317,000 after acquiring an additional 205,450 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Hsbc Holdings PLC increased its stake in Darden Restaurants by 81.2% in the 2nd quarter. Hsbc Holdings PLC now owns 457,114 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock worth $69,125,000 after purchasing an additional 204,832 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 93.64% of the company’s stock.

Insider Activity at Darden Restaurants

In other news, insider Laura B. Williamson sold 1,666 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Monday, September 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $172.00, for a total transaction of $286,552.00. Following the sale, the insider now owns 5,334 shares in the company, valued at approximately $917,448. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. In other Darden Restaurants news, insider Melvin John Martin sold 3,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Friday, October 4th. The shares were sold at an average price of $163.30, for a total transaction 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. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, 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 sale, the insider now directly owns 5,334 shares in the company, valued at $917,448. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 59,265 shares of company stock worth $10,116,030 in the last 90 days. Company insiders own 0.58% of the company’s stock.

Darden Restaurants Stock Performance

Shares of Darden Restaurants stock opened at $167.07 on Wednesday. Darden Restaurants, Inc. has a 12 month low of $135.87 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 business’s fifty day simple moving average is $162.56 and its 200 day simple moving average is $153.34. The firm has a market capitalization of $19.63 billion, a P/E ratio of 19.27, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.94 and a beta of 1.31.

Darden Restaurants (NYSE:DRI) last issued its earnings results 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 the consensus estimate of $2.80 billion. Darden Restaurants had a return on equity of 49.46% and a net margin of 9.11%. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 1.0% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned $1.78 EPS. As a group, analysts anticipate that Darden Restaurants, Inc. will post 9.47 EPS for the current year.

Darden Restaurants Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, November 1st. Shareholders of record on Thursday, October 10th were issued a $1.40 dividend. This represents a $5.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.35%. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, October 10th. This is a positive change from Darden Restaurants’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.29. Darden Restaurants’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 64.59%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities analysts recently commented on DRI shares. UBS Group lifted 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. Citigroup dropped their price objective on shares of Darden Restaurants from $192.00 to $191.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, September 10th. TD Cowen reaffirmed a “hold” rating and issued a $150.00 price target on shares of Darden Restaurants in a research note on Thursday, September 19th. Raymond James reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and set a $160.00 price target on shares of Darden Restaurants in a research note on Tuesday, August 20th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their price objective on shares of Darden Restaurants from $165.00 to $176.00 and gave the company an “overweight” 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 sixteen have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, Darden Restaurants currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $180.13.

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.