MAI Capital Management grew its holdings in Darden Restaurants, Inc. (NYSE:DRI – Free Report) by 11.8% in the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 7,046 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock after acquiring an additional 746 shares during the quarter. MAI Capital Management’s holdings in Darden Restaurants were worth $1,093,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.
Several other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Cetera Advisor Networks LLC increased its holdings in shares of Darden Restaurants by 2.6% in the first quarter. Cetera Advisor Networks LLC now owns 3,237 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock valued at $430,000 after purchasing an additional 83 shares during the period. D.A. Davidson & CO. lifted its stake in Darden Restaurants by 25.1% during the 1st quarter. D.A. Davidson & CO. now owns 2,001 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock valued at $266,000 after acquiring an additional 401 shares during the period. Healthcare of Ontario Pension Plan Trust Fund purchased a new stake in shares of Darden Restaurants in the 1st quarter valued at $150,000. Commonwealth of Pennsylvania Public School Empls Retrmt SYS increased its stake in shares of Darden Restaurants by 4.9% in the first quarter. Commonwealth of Pennsylvania Public School Empls Retrmt SYS now owns 17,090 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock worth $2,272,000 after acquiring an additional 800 shares during the period. Finally, Dimensional Fund Advisors LP raised its holdings in shares of Darden Restaurants by 17.1% during the first quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 776,082 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock worth $103,176,000 after purchasing an additional 113,548 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 93.75% of the company’s stock.
Insider Activity
In related news, Chairman Eugene I. Lee, Jr. sold 31,818 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, June 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $160.29, for a total value of $5,100,107.22. Following the completion of the sale, the chairman now directly owns 199,856 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $32,034,918.24. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. In other news, insider Daniel J. Kiernan sold 12,639 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Thursday, June 29th. The shares were sold at an average price of $165.09, for a total transaction of $2,086,572.51. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now owns 16,043 shares in the company, valued at $2,648,538.87. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Also, Chairman Eugene I. Lee, Jr. sold 31,818 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, June 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $160.29, for a total value of $5,100,107.22. Following the sale, the chairman now directly owns 199,856 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $32,034,918.24. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last quarter, insiders sold 260,775 shares of company stock worth $43,532,251. Corporate insiders own 0.85% of the company’s stock.
Darden Restaurants Trading Down 0.3 %
Darden Restaurants (NYSE:DRI – Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, June 22nd. The restaurant operator reported $2.58 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.54 by $0.04. The business had revenue of $2.77 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $2.77 billion. Darden Restaurants had a net margin of 9.36% and a return on equity of 47.22%. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 6.4% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company posted $2.24 EPS. As a group, equities analysts predict that Darden Restaurants, Inc. will post 8.81 earnings per share for the current year.
Darden Restaurants Increases Dividend
The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, August 1st. Investors of record on Monday, July 10th were issued a $1.31 dividend. This represents a $5.24 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.31%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, July 7th. This is a positive change from Darden Restaurants’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.21. Darden Restaurants’s dividend payout ratio is 65.50%.
Wall Street Analyst Weigh In
A number of analysts have recently commented on the company. Stifel Nicolaus upped their target price on Darden Restaurants from $165.00 to $178.00 in a research note on Friday, June 23rd. KeyCorp increased their target price on shares of Darden Restaurants from $170.00 to $185.00 in a research note on Thursday, June 15th. Robert W. Baird lifted their price target on Darden Restaurants from $152.00 to $165.00 in a research note on Friday, June 23rd. StockNews.com initiated coverage on Darden Restaurants in a report on Thursday. They issued a “hold” rating for the company. Finally, Piper Sandler started coverage on Darden Restaurants in a report on Monday, July 17th. They issued a “neutral” rating and a $167.00 price objective on the stock. Six analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and fifteen have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, Darden Restaurants has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $168.04.
Darden Restaurants Profile
Darden Restaurants, Inc, through 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 brands.
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