Vinva Investment Management Ltd Raises Position in Darden Restaurants, Inc. (NYSE:DRI)

Vinva Investment Management Ltd increased its holdings in Darden Restaurants, Inc. (NYSE:DRI) by 10.3% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 5,407 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock after buying an additional 504 shares during the period. Vinva Investment Management Ltd’s holdings in Darden Restaurants were worth $1,010,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in DRI. Kestra Investment Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Darden Restaurants in the fourth quarter worth $25,000. Compass Wealth Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Darden Restaurants in the fourth quarter worth $28,000. TCTC Holdings LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Darden Restaurants in the fourth quarter worth $28,000. MCF Advisors LLC raised its position in shares of Darden Restaurants by 50.9% in the fourth quarter. MCF Advisors LLC now owns 175 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock worth $33,000 after buying an additional 59 shares in the last quarter. Finally, HHM Wealth Advisors LLC raised its position in shares of Darden Restaurants by 103.2% in the fourth quarter. HHM Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 254 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock worth $47,000 after buying an additional 129 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 93.64% of the company’s stock.

Darden Restaurants Stock Up 5.6 %

NYSE DRI opened at $198.66 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.02, a current ratio of 0.37 and a quick ratio of 0.23. The stock has a market capitalization of $23.27 billion, a PE ratio of 22.76, a PEG ratio of 2.15 and a beta of 1.27. Darden Restaurants, Inc. has a 1 year low of $135.87 and a 1 year high of $203.47. The business’s 50-day moving average is $191.67 and its 200 day moving average is $176.31.

Darden Restaurants (NYSE:DRI) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, March 20th. The restaurant operator reported $2.80 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, hitting the consensus estimate of $2.80. The company had revenue of $3.16 billion for 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%. Darden Restaurants’s quarterly revenue was up 6.2% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the firm earned $2.60 earnings per share. Sell-side analysts forecast that Darden Restaurants, Inc. will post 9.52 earnings per share for the current year.

Darden Restaurants Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, May 1st. Investors of record on Thursday, April 10th will be paid a $1.40 dividend. This represents a $5.60 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.82%. Darden Restaurants’s payout ratio is presently 64.15%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Darden Restaurants news, insider Todd Burrowes sold 15,783 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, January 14th. The shares were sold at an average price of $183.03, for a total value of $2,888,762.49. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now directly owns 46,288 shares in the company, valued at $8,472,092.64. This trade represents a 25.43 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, CFO Rajesh Vennam sold 7,228 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, December 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $181.71, for a total transaction of $1,313,399.88. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer now owns 10,262 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,864,708.02. This trade represents a 41.33 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 52,926 shares of company stock worth $9,850,129 over the last three months. Company insiders own 0.58% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

DRI has been the topic of a number of research reports. Robert W. Baird raised their price target on Darden Restaurants from $180.00 to $194.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Friday, December 20th. Stephens restated an “equal weight” rating and set a $175.00 price target on shares of Darden Restaurants in a research report on Thursday. The Goldman Sachs Group initiated coverage on Darden Restaurants in a research report on Thursday, December 5th. They set a “neutral” rating and a $183.00 price target on the stock. Truist Financial raised their price target on Darden Restaurants from $200.00 to $212.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday. Finally, UBS Group raised their price target on Darden Restaurants from $195.00 to $210.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, December 20th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have issued a hold rating and sixteen have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $193.33.

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.