Darden Restaurants, Inc. (NYSE:DRI) Shares Sold by Creative Planning

Creative Planning trimmed its stake in Darden Restaurants, Inc. (NYSE:DRI) by 14.1% during the third quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 17,526 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock after selling 2,878 shares during the quarter. Creative Planning’s holdings in Darden Restaurants were worth $2,876,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of DRI. Raymond James & Associates raised its holdings 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 buying an additional 105,433 shares during the period. Earnest Partners LLC raised its holdings in shares of Darden Restaurants by 1.2% during the second quarter. Earnest Partners LLC now owns 1,591,541 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock valued at $240,832,000 after acquiring an additional 18,899 shares during the period. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP lifted its position in shares of Darden Restaurants by 13.1% in the 2nd quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 1,141,974 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock valued at $172,811,000 after acquiring an additional 132,643 shares in the last quarter. Raymond James Financial Services Advisors Inc. lifted its position in shares of Darden Restaurants by 2.7% in the 2nd quarter. Raymond James Financial Services Advisors Inc. now owns 1,004,932 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock valued at $152,066,000 after acquiring an additional 26,081 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Steadfast Capital Management LP boosted its stake in Darden Restaurants by 10.0% in the 1st quarter. Steadfast Capital Management LP now owns 933,000 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock worth $155,951,000 after purchasing an additional 85,000 shares during the period. 93.64% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Darden Restaurants Trading Down 1.6 %

Darden Restaurants stock opened at $159.92 on Friday. Darden Restaurants, Inc. has a one year low of $135.87 and a one year high of $176.84. The company’s fifty day moving average price is $160.58 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $152.56. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.65, a current ratio of 0.35 and a quick ratio of 0.22. The company has a market capitalization of $19.09 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 18.77, a PEG ratio of 1.83 and a beta of 1.30.

Darden Restaurants (NYSE:DRI) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, September 19th. The restaurant operator reported $1.75 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate 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 the consensus estimate of $2.80 billion. During the same quarter last year, the company posted $1.78 EPS. The business’s revenue was up 1.0% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, analysts forecast that Darden Restaurants, Inc. will post 9.47 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. Shareholders of record on Thursday, October 10th will be issued a dividend of $1.40 per share. This represents a $5.60 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.50%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, October 10th. This is an increase from Darden Restaurants’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.29. Darden Restaurants’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 65.73%.

Insider Activity

In related news, insider Melvin John Martin sold 3,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Friday, October 4th. The shares were sold at an average price of $163.30, for a total value of $489,900.00. Following the transaction, the insider now directly owns 12,601 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,057,743.30. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. In related news, insider Melvin John Martin sold 3,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, October 4th. The stock was sold at an average price of $163.30, for a total transaction of $489,900.00. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now owns 12,601 shares in the company, valued at $2,057,743.30. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Also, SVP Susan M. Connelly sold 3,320 shares of Darden Restaurants stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, October 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $163.43, for a total value of $542,587.60. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president now directly owns 6,155 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,005,911.65. This represents 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 75,206 shares of company stock valued at $12,460,313 over the last 90 days. 0.85% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several analysts have recently commented on DRI shares. Citigroup decreased their target price on Darden Restaurants from $192.00 to $191.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, September 10th. Wedbush raised their price objective on Darden Restaurants from $170.00 to $200.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Friday, September 20th. TD Cowen reiterated a “hold” rating and issued a $150.00 target price on shares of Darden Restaurants in a report on Thursday, September 19th. Wells Fargo & Company raised their price target on shares of Darden Restaurants from $160.00 to $165.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a report on Friday, September 20th. Finally, UBS Group boosted their price objective on shares of Darden Restaurants from $188.00 to $195.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, September 20th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have assigned a hold rating and sixteen have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average 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.