Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Group Inc. Acquires 8,526 Shares of Darden Restaurants, Inc. $DRI

Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Group Inc. grew its position in shares of Darden Restaurants, Inc. (NYSE:DRI) by 3.3% during the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 267,741 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock after buying an additional 8,526 shares during the quarter. Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Group Inc. owned 0.23% of Darden Restaurants worth $58,360,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of the company. Centennial Bank AR purchased a new stake in Darden Restaurants in the 1st quarter worth $31,000. SouthState Corp purchased a new position in shares of Darden Restaurants during the first quarter valued at about $36,000. Rise Advisors LLC grew its position in Darden Restaurants by 32.2% in the first quarter. Rise Advisors LLC now owns 201 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock worth $42,000 after acquiring an additional 49 shares in the last quarter. Migdal Insurance & Financial Holdings Ltd. purchased a new position in Darden Restaurants in the first quarter worth about $44,000. Finally, TruNorth Capital Management LLC purchased a new position in Darden Restaurants in the first quarter worth about $45,000. 93.64% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, insider Laura B. Williamson sold 1,157 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, July 30th. The shares were sold at an average price of $204.70, for a total transaction of $236,837.90. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider owned 10,632 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,176,370.40. This trade represents a 9.81% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, SVP Matthew R. Broad sold 5,661 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, October 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $193.40, for a total transaction of $1,094,837.40. Following the transaction, the senior vice president directly owned 13,916 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,691,354.40. The trade was a 28.92% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 7,341 shares of company stock valued at $1,438,707 in the last ninety days. 0.49% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Darden Restaurants Trading Down 0.8%

Shares of Darden Restaurants stock opened at $184.92 on Monday. The firm has a market capitalization of $21.51 billion, a PE ratio of 19.82, a P/E/G ratio of 1.69 and a beta of 0.77. The company has a current ratio of 0.40, a quick ratio of 0.27 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.96. Darden Restaurants, Inc. has a twelve month low of $157.89 and a twelve month high of $228.27. The firm’s 50-day moving average price is $197.74 and its 200 day moving average price is $204.79.

Darden Restaurants (NYSE:DRI) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, September 18th. The restaurant operator reported $1.97 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.01 by ($0.04). The business had revenue of $3.04 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.03 billion. Darden Restaurants had a net margin of 8.90% and a return on equity of 52.35%. The firm’s revenue was up 10.4% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $1.75 EPS. Darden Restaurants has set its FY 2026 guidance at 10.500-10.700 EPS. On average, sell-side analysts predict that Darden Restaurants, Inc. will post 9.52 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Darden Restaurants Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, November 3rd. Investors of record on Friday, October 10th will be given a dividend of $1.50 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, October 10th. This represents a $6.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.2%. Darden Restaurants’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 64.31%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several analysts have issued reports on DRI shares. BTIG Research decreased their price objective on shares of Darden Restaurants from $235.00 to $225.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, September 19th. Melius initiated coverage on shares of Darden Restaurants in a research note on Monday, July 14th. They set a “hold” rating and a $240.00 price target for the company. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reduced their price objective on shares of Darden Restaurants from $240.00 to $230.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Monday, October 6th. The Goldman Sachs Group raised Darden Restaurants from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $225.00 price target on the stock in a research report on Monday, October 20th. Finally, BMO Capital Markets reduced their price target on Darden Restaurants from $215.00 to $205.00 and set a “market perform” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, September 19th. Twenty analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and nine have given a Hold rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Darden Restaurants currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $227.15.

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.