Huntington National Bank Boosts Stake in Darden Restaurants, Inc. (NYSE:DRI)

Huntington National Bank grew its stake in Darden Restaurants, Inc. (NYSE:DRI) by 3.3% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 6,233 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock after acquiring an additional 201 shares during the quarter. Huntington National Bank’s holdings in Darden Restaurants were worth $1,164,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other large investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Kestra Investment Management LLC bought a new stake in shares of Darden Restaurants in the 4th quarter valued at about $25,000. Compass Wealth Management LLC acquired a new stake in Darden Restaurants in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $28,000. TCTC Holdings LLC purchased a new position in Darden Restaurants in the fourth quarter worth $28,000. MCF Advisors LLC increased its position in shares of Darden Restaurants by 50.9% during the fourth quarter. MCF Advisors LLC now owns 175 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock worth $33,000 after purchasing an additional 59 shares in the last quarter. Finally, HHM Wealth Advisors LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Darden Restaurants by 103.2% during the 4th quarter. HHM Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 254 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock valued at $47,000 after purchasing an additional 129 shares during the last quarter. 93.64% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Insider Buying and Selling at Darden Restaurants

In related news, CEO Ricardo Cardenas sold 20,518 shares of Darden Restaurants stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, March 24th. The shares were sold at an average price of $208.19, for a total value of $4,271,642.42. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 58,836 shares in the company, valued at approximately $12,249,066.84. This trade represents a 25.86 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, insider Laura B. Williamson sold 2,289 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, March 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $207.26, for a total value of $474,418.14. Following the transaction, the insider now owns 10,056 shares in the company, valued at $2,084,206.56. This trade represents a 18.54 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 70,311 shares of company stock worth $13,658,221 over the last quarter. 0.58% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Darden Restaurants Stock Down 4.3 %

DRI stock opened at $200.60 on Friday. The company has a current ratio of 0.37, a quick ratio of 0.23 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.02. The firm has a 50-day moving average of $196.38 and a two-hundred day moving average of $179.68. Darden Restaurants, Inc. has a 12 month low of $135.87 and a 12 month high of $211.00. The company has a market cap of $23.50 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 22.98, a PEG ratio of 2.15 and a beta of 1.27.

Darden Restaurants (NYSE:DRI) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, March 20th. The restaurant operator reported $2.80 EPS for the quarter, meeting the consensus estimate of $2.80. The firm had revenue of $3.16 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $3.22 billion. Darden Restaurants had a return on equity of 50.12% and a net margin of 9.01%. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 6.2% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $2.60 earnings per share. As a group, analysts forecast that Darden Restaurants, Inc. will post 9.52 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Darden Restaurants Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, May 1st. Shareholders of record on Thursday, April 10th will be paid a dividend of $1.40 per share. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, April 10th. This represents a $5.60 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.79%. Darden Restaurants’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 63.13%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research analysts recently weighed in on the company. UBS Group boosted their target price on Darden Restaurants from $210.00 to $225.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, March 21st. The Goldman Sachs Group began coverage on shares of Darden Restaurants in a report on Thursday, December 5th. They set a “neutral” rating and a $183.00 price objective on the stock. Stephens increased their price objective on shares of Darden Restaurants from $175.00 to $178.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Friday, March 21st. Barclays boosted their target price on shares of Darden Restaurants from $230.00 to $235.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday, March 21st. Finally, Raymond James raised their price target on shares of Darden Restaurants from $200.00 to $210.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Tuesday, January 28th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have given a hold rating and seventeen have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $202.08.

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.