Swiss Life Asset Management Ltd Sells 8,582 Shares of Darden Restaurants, Inc. $DRI

Swiss Life Asset Management Ltd lessened its holdings in shares of Darden Restaurants, Inc. (NYSE:DRI) by 2.5% in the 3rd quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The institutional investor owned 337,383 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock after selling 8,582 shares during the quarter. Swiss Life Asset Management Ltd’s holdings in Darden Restaurants were worth $64,224,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of the business. Twin Peaks Wealth Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Darden Restaurants in the second quarter worth approximately $26,000. Quent Capital LLC purchased a new position in Darden Restaurants during the 3rd quarter valued at $27,000. Elevation Point Wealth Partners LLC purchased a new position in Darden Restaurants during the 2nd quarter valued at $29,000. Ameriflex Group Inc. bought a new position in Darden Restaurants in the 3rd quarter valued at $35,000. Finally, Wealth Watch Advisors INC bought a new position in Darden Restaurants in the 3rd quarter valued at $39,000. Institutional investors own 93.64% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

DRI has been the subject of several research analyst reports. Jefferies Financial Group decreased their target price on Darden Restaurants from $210.00 to $200.00 and set a “hold” rating for the company in a research report on Monday, December 15th. Stephens restated an “equal weight” rating and issued a $205.00 price target on shares of Darden Restaurants in a report on Thursday, March 12th. Melius Research raised shares of Darden Restaurants from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, January 23rd. Barclays decreased their price objective on shares of Darden Restaurants from $230.00 to $227.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, January 7th. Finally, Raymond James Financial reissued a “market perform” rating on shares of Darden Restaurants in a research report on Wednesday, January 21st. Twenty equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and nine have given a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $224.63.

Insider Buying and Selling at Darden Restaurants

In other Darden Restaurants news, insider John W. Wilkerson sold 2,258 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, January 16th. The shares were sold at an average price of $213.00, for a total transaction of $480,954.00. Following the transaction, the insider owned 17,784 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $3,787,992. This trade represents a 11.27% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, CFO Rajesh Vennam sold 6,774 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, January 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $214.12, for a total transaction of $1,450,448.88. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer owned 9,040 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,935,644.80. This represents a 42.84% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Insiders have sold 18,770 shares of company stock valued at $3,948,970 in the last 90 days. Insiders own 0.49% of the company’s stock.

Darden Restaurants Trading Down 1.6%

Shares of NYSE DRI opened at $200.50 on Thursday. Darden Restaurants, Inc. has a twelve month low of $169.00 and a twelve month high of $228.27. The firm has a market cap of $23.09 billion, a PE ratio of 21.02, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.98 and a beta of 0.61. The business has a fifty day simple moving average of $208.05 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $194.62. The company has a quick ratio of 0.26, a current ratio of 0.39 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.03.

Darden Restaurants (NYSE:DRI) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, March 19th. The restaurant operator reported $2.95 EPS for the quarter, meeting the consensus estimate of $2.95. The firm had revenue of $3.35 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.33 billion. Darden Restaurants had a return on equity of 52.44% and a net margin of 8.92%. Analysts expect that Darden Restaurants, Inc. will post 9.52 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Darden Restaurants Company Profile

Darden Restaurants, Inc is a multi-brand, full-service restaurant company headquartered in Orlando, Florida. The company owns and operates a portfolio of casual and fine-dining concepts that together serve millions of guests through company-owned and franchised locations. Its well-known brands include Olive Garden and LongHorn Steakhouse, alongside other dining concepts that span Italian, American, steakhouse and upscale casual formats.

Darden’s restaurants provide a range of guest-facing services including dine-in, takeout, delivery and catering, and feature menus tailored to each brand’s positioning—Italian-American fare at Olive Garden, steaks and grilled items at LongHorn, and more premium steakhouse and chef-driven offerings at its upscale concepts.