Forsta AP Fonden Buys 3,300 Shares of Darden Restaurants, Inc. (NYSE:DRI)

Forsta AP Fonden lifted its stake in shares of Darden Restaurants, Inc. (NYSE:DRI) by 5.6% in the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 61,900 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock after acquiring an additional 3,300 shares during the quarter. Forsta AP Fonden owned approximately 0.05% of Darden Restaurants worth $9,367,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

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

Insider Transactions at Darden Restaurants

In related news, SVP Sarah H. King sold 15,941 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, July 30th. The shares were sold at an average price of $147.06, for a total value of $2,344,283.46. Following the transaction, the senior vice president now owns 447 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $65,735.82. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. In related news, insider Melvin John Martin sold 2,500 shares of the business’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 value of $352,725.00. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now owns 11,691 shares in the company, valued at $1,649,483.19. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, SVP Sarah H. King sold 15,941 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction 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 transaction, the senior vice president now owns 447 shares in the company, valued at $65,735.82. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Corporate insiders own 0.85% of the company’s stock.

Darden Restaurants Price Performance

DRI stock opened at $160.25 on Friday. The stock has a market cap of $19.13 billion, a PE ratio of 18.81, a P/E/G ratio of 1.76 and a beta of 1.30. Darden Restaurants, Inc. has a 12 month low of $133.36 and a 12 month high of $176.84. The company has a 50-day moving average price of $148.54 and a 200 day moving average price of $153.72. The company has a current ratio of 0.38, a quick ratio of 0.24 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.61.

Darden Restaurants (NYSE:DRI) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, June 20th. The restaurant operator reported $2.65 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.61 by $0.04. Darden Restaurants had a return on equity of 49.82% and a net margin of 9.02%. The business had revenue of $3 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.97 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned $2.58 earnings per share. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 8.3% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities research analysts anticipate that Darden Restaurants, Inc. will post 9.47 earnings per share for the current year.

Darden Restaurants Cuts Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, August 15th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, July 11th were paid a $1.29 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, July 10th. This represents a $5.16 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.22%. Darden Restaurants’s payout ratio is 65.73%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research firms recently issued reports on DRI. Morgan Stanley reiterated an “overweight” rating and set a $175.00 target price on shares of Darden Restaurants in a research report on Friday, June 21st. Barclays reduced their price objective on shares of Darden Restaurants from $187.00 to $180.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, June 14th. Stifel Nicolaus dropped their target price on shares of Darden Restaurants from $190.00 to $180.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, June 21st. KeyCorp reduced their price target on shares of Darden Restaurants from $177.00 to $170.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, June 13th. Finally, BTIG Research raised shares of Darden Restaurants from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $175.00 price objective for the company in a report on Friday, May 17th. One research 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 data from MarketBeat.com, Darden Restaurants presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $170.18.

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.