First Financial Bank Trust Division Has $5.42 Million Holdings in Darden Restaurants, Inc. (NYSE:DRI)

First Financial Bank Trust Division lessened its holdings in Darden Restaurants, Inc. (NYSE:DRI) by 11.2% in the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 33,031 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock after selling 4,181 shares during the period. First Financial Bank Trust Division’s holdings in Darden Restaurants were worth $5,421,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also modified their holdings of the business. Raymond James & Associates lifted its position in Darden Restaurants by 4.8% during the 2nd quarter. Raymond James & Associates now owns 2,308,144 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock worth $349,268,000 after acquiring an additional 105,433 shares during the last quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP lifted its position in Darden Restaurants by 10.3% during the 4th quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 1,809,155 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock worth $297,244,000 after acquiring an additional 169,642 shares during the last quarter. Earnest Partners LLC lifted its position in Darden Restaurants by 1.2% during the 2nd quarter. Earnest Partners LLC now owns 1,591,541 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock worth $240,832,000 after acquiring an additional 18,899 shares during the last quarter. Congress Asset Management Co. MA lifted its position in Darden Restaurants by 0.5% during the 4th quarter. Congress Asset Management Co. MA now owns 1,418,592 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock worth $233,075,000 after acquiring an additional 6,968 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Dimensional Fund Advisors LP lifted its position in Darden Restaurants by 13.1% during the 2nd quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 1,141,974 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock worth $172,811,000 after acquiring an additional 132,643 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 93.64% of the company’s stock.

Insider Activity

In other news, SVP Susan M. Connelly sold 3,320 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, October 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $163.43, for a total transaction of $542,587.60. Following the sale, the senior vice president now directly owns 6,155 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,005,911.65. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. In other Darden Restaurants news, SVP Susan M. Connelly sold 3,320 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, October 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $163.43, for a total value of $542,587.60. Following the transaction, the senior vice president now directly owns 6,155 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,005,911.65. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, insider Melvin John Martin sold 2,500 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, July 25th. The shares were sold at an average price of $141.09, for a total transaction of $352,725.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now directly owns 11,691 shares in the company, valued at $1,649,483.19. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 74,706 shares of company stock valued at $12,323,138 over the last three months. 0.85% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research analysts have recently issued reports on DRI shares. 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 report on Tuesday, September 10th. UBS Group boosted their price objective on shares of Darden Restaurants from $188.00 to $195.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, September 20th. Jefferies Financial Group downgraded shares of Darden Restaurants from a “hold” rating to an “underperform” rating and dropped their price objective for the stock from $154.00 to $124.00 in a report on Thursday, July 11th. Wedbush boosted their price objective on shares of Darden Restaurants from $170.00 to $200.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Friday, September 20th. Finally, Bank of America boosted their price objective on shares of Darden Restaurants from $184.00 to $195.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, September 20th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have issued a hold rating and seventeen have assigned a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $179.25.

Darden Restaurants Price Performance

Shares of Darden Restaurants stock opened at $162.70 on Thursday. 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 stock has a market capitalization of $19.42 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 19.10, a P/E/G ratio of 1.99 and a beta of 1.30. Darden Restaurants, Inc. has a 1-year low of $133.36 and a 1-year high of $176.84. The firm’s 50-day moving average price is $154.74 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $153.02.

Darden Restaurants (NYSE:DRI) last announced its 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 company had revenue of $2.76 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.80 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $1.78 earnings per share. Darden Restaurants’s revenue for the quarter was up 1.0% on a year-over-year basis. On average, equities analysts predict that Darden Restaurants, Inc. will post 9.48 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Darden Restaurants Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, November 1st. Stockholders of record on Thursday, October 10th will be paid a dividend of $1.40 per share. This is a boost from Darden Restaurants’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.29. This represents a $5.60 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.44%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, October 10th. Darden Restaurants’s dividend payout ratio is 65.73%.

Darden Restaurants Company Profile

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.