Melvin John Martin Sells 2,000 Shares of Darden Restaurants, Inc. (NYSE:DRI) Stock

Darden Restaurants, Inc. (NYSE:DRI) insider Melvin John Martin sold 2,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, September 27th. The shares were sold at an average price of $167.23, for a total transaction of $334,460.00. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now directly owns 15,562 shares in the company, valued at $2,602,433.26. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website.

Melvin John Martin also recently made the following trade(s):

• On Thursday, July 25th, Melvin John Martin sold 2,500 shares of Darden Restaurants stock. The shares were sold at an average price of $141.09, for a total transaction of $352,725.00.

Darden Restaurants Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:DRI opened at $164.14 on Wednesday. The company has a market cap of $19.59 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 19.27, a PEG ratio of 1.99 and a beta of 1.30. 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 firm has a 50 day simple moving average of $154.28 and a 200 day simple moving average of $152.96. Darden Restaurants, Inc. has a one year low of $133.36 and a one year high of $176.84.

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). The business had revenue of $2.76 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.80 billion. Darden Restaurants had a net margin of 9.11% and a return on equity of 49.46%. Darden Restaurants’s revenue was up 1.0% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the business posted $1.78 EPS. Research analysts predict that Darden Restaurants, Inc. will post 9.48 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Darden Restaurants Increases Dividend

The firm 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. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, October 10th. This represents a $5.60 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.41%. This is an increase from Darden Restaurants’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.29. Darden Restaurants’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 65.73%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Darden Restaurants

Large investors have recently modified their holdings of the business. Cibc World Markets Corp raised its stake in Darden Restaurants by 39.7% during the fourth quarter. Cibc World Markets Corp now owns 30,344 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock worth $4,986,000 after buying an additional 8,619 shares during the last quarter. APG Asset Management US Inc. bought a new position in Darden Restaurants during the fourth quarter worth $3,901,000. Russell Investments Group Ltd. raised its stake in Darden Restaurants by 206.5% during the first quarter. Russell Investments Group Ltd. now owns 49,082 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock worth $8,204,000 after buying an additional 33,066 shares during the last quarter. Rise Advisors LLC raised its stake in Darden Restaurants by 131.3% during the first quarter. Rise Advisors LLC now owns 155 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock worth $26,000 after buying an additional 88 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Nomura Holdings Inc. bought a new position in Darden Restaurants during the fourth quarter worth $838,000. Institutional investors own 93.64% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

DRI has been the topic of several research analyst reports. UBS Group increased their price target on shares of Darden Restaurants from $188.00 to $195.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, September 20th. Stifel Nicolaus lowered their price target on shares of Darden Restaurants from $190.00 to $180.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, June 21st. Piper Sandler increased their price target on shares of Darden Restaurants from $159.00 to $177.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Friday, September 20th. BMO Capital Markets increased their target price on shares of Darden Restaurants from $165.00 to $175.00 and gave the stock a “market perform” rating in a research report on Friday, September 20th. Finally, Truist Financial increased their target price on shares of Darden Restaurants from $185.00 to $195.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research 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 given a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $179.25.

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.