JSF Financial LLC Buys 6,789 Shares of Darden Restaurants, Inc. $DRI

JSF Financial LLC purchased a new stake in Darden Restaurants, Inc. (NYSE:DRI) in the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm purchased 6,789 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock, valued at approximately $1,312,000.

A number of other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the stock. BlackRock Inc. acquired a new stake in Darden Restaurants during the 2nd quarter worth about $2,015,109,000. Bank of America Corp DE acquired a new position in shares of Darden Restaurants in the second quarter worth about $651,813,000. Bank of New York Mellon Corp acquired a new position in shares of Darden Restaurants in the second quarter worth about $204,099,000. Legal & General Group Plc acquired a new position in shares of Darden Restaurants in the second quarter worth about $118,824,000. Finally, Deutsche Bank AG purchased a new position in shares of Darden Restaurants in the second quarter worth approximately $103,322,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 93.64% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research firms have recently issued reports on DRI. Oppenheimer boosted their price target on shares of Darden Restaurants from $235.00 to $245.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Tuesday, September 15th. Argus upped their price target on shares of Darden Restaurants from $240.00 to $245.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, June 30th. Morgan Stanley raised their price objective on shares of Darden Restaurants from $236.00 to $255.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Monday, September 14th. Mizuho raised their price objective on shares of Darden Restaurants from $235.00 to $245.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Friday, September 25th. Finally, Sanford C. Bernstein reiterated an “outperform” rating and set a $230.00 price objective on shares of Darden Restaurants in a research report on Friday, September 25th. Sixteen investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and nine have issued a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $232.82.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Darden Restaurants news, insider John Wilkerson sold 8,864 shares of Darden Restaurants stock in a transaction on Wednesday, August 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $208.33, for a total transaction of $1,846,637.12. Following the completion of the sale, the insider owned 18,794 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $3,915,354.02. This trade represents a 32.05% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, insider Laura Williamson sold 443 shares of Darden Restaurants stock in a transaction on Friday, July 31st. The shares were sold at an average price of $204.89, for a total transaction of $90,766.27. Following the sale, the insider directly owned 5,536 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,134,271.04. This trade represents a 7.41% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Over the last quarter, insiders have sold 60,255 shares of company stock worth $12,589,319. Insiders own 0.67% of the company’s stock.

Darden Restaurants Price Performance

NYSE DRI opened at $217.28 on Friday. The company has a 50 day simple moving average of $211.20 and a 200-day simple moving average of $205.48. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.79, a current ratio of 0.30 and a quick ratio of 0.20. The firm has a market capitalization of $24.58 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 21.24, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.01 and a beta of 0.63. Darden Restaurants, Inc. has a 52-week low of $169.00 and a 52-week high of $229.76.

Darden Restaurants (NYSE:DRI) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, September 24th. The restaurant operator reported $2.05 EPS for the quarter, hitting the consensus estimate of $2.05. Darden Restaurants had a net margin of 8.85% and a return on equity of 58.64%. The business had revenue of $3.20 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $3.21 billion. During the same period last year, the company posted $1.97 earnings per share. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 5.1% compared to the same quarter last year. Darden Restaurants has set its FY 2027 guidance at 11.100-11.350 EPS. Equities research analysts predict that Darden Restaurants, Inc. will post 11.24 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Darden Restaurants Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, November 2nd. Shareholders of record on Friday, October 9th will be given a $1.62 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Friday, October 9th. This represents a $6.48 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.0%. Darden Restaurants’s dividend payout ratio is presently 63.34%.

Darden Restaurants Company Profile

Darden Restaurants, Inc is a full-service restaurant company that owns and operates a portfolio of dining brands in the United States. Its restaurants offer a range of cuisines and dining formats, including Italian-American, steakhouse, seafood, casual dining and polished casual concepts.

The company’s portfolio includes Olive Garden, LongHorn Steakhouse, Cheddar’s Scratch Kitchen, Yard House, Ruth’s Chris Steak House, The Capital Grille, Seasons 52, Bahama Breeze and Eddie V’s. These brands serve meals prepared for on-premises dining, as well as takeout and other off-premises occasions.

Darden traces its history to 1968, when founder William “Bill” Darden opened the first Red Lobster restaurant in Lakeland, Florida.