Rehmann Capital Advisory Group Has $251,000 Holdings in Darden Restaurants, Inc. (NYSE:DRI)

Rehmann Capital Advisory Group increased its stake in Darden Restaurants, Inc. (NYSE:DRI) by 6.8% in the first quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The firm owned 1,500 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock after purchasing an additional 96 shares during the quarter. Rehmann Capital Advisory Group’s holdings in Darden Restaurants were worth $251,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Alps Advisors Inc. boosted its stake in shares of Darden Restaurants by 3.0% during the 3rd quarter. Alps Advisors Inc. now owns 2,274 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock worth $326,000 after buying an additional 66 shares during the last quarter. Morgan Stanley boosted its stake in shares of Darden Restaurants by 13.8% during the 3rd quarter. Morgan Stanley now owns 1,669,789 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock worth $239,148,000 after buying an additional 202,139 shares during the last quarter. Comerica Bank acquired a new position in shares of Darden Restaurants during the 3rd quarter worth about $7,743,000. EP Wealth Advisors LLC acquired a new position in shares of Darden Restaurants during the 3rd quarter worth about $220,000. Finally, Deutsche Bank AG boosted its stake in shares of Darden Restaurants by 7.7% during the 3rd quarter. Deutsche Bank AG now owns 329,247 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock worth $47,155,000 after buying an additional 23,465 shares during the last quarter. 93.64% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Darden Restaurants Trading Down 0.8 %

NYSE:DRI traded down $1.10 during midday trading on Wednesday, reaching $137.79. 1,740,574 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 1,197,563. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.61, a quick ratio of 0.24 and a current ratio of 0.38. Darden Restaurants, Inc. has a 12 month low of $133.36 and a 12 month high of $176.84. The stock has a market capitalization of $16.45 billion, a P/E ratio of 16.29, a PEG ratio of 1.66 and a beta of 1.29. The company has a fifty day moving average of $149.18 and a 200 day moving average of $158.42.

Darden Restaurants (NYSE:DRI) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, June 20th. The restaurant operator reported $2.65 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.61 by $0.04. Darden Restaurants had a net margin of 9.02% and a return on equity of 49.82%. The company had revenue of $3 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.97 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $2.58 EPS. Darden Restaurants’s revenue for the quarter was up 8.3% on a year-over-year basis. On average, research analysts predict that Darden Restaurants, Inc. will post 9.5 EPS for the current year.

Darden Restaurants Cuts Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, August 15th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, July 11th will be issued a dividend of $1.29 per share. This represents a $5.16 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.74%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, July 10th. Darden Restaurants’s payout ratio is presently 61.50%.

Darden Restaurants declared that its board has approved a stock repurchase program on Thursday, March 21st that permits the company to buyback $1.00 billion in shares. This buyback authorization permits the restaurant operator to repurchase up to 5% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback programs are typically a sign that the company’s leadership believes its shares are undervalued.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

DRI has been the topic of a number of research analyst reports. Stephens reaffirmed an “equal weight” rating and issued a $165.00 target price on shares of Darden Restaurants in a report on Thursday, June 20th. Oppenheimer dropped their target price on shares of Darden Restaurants from $186.00 to $182.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, March 22nd. Argus lowered their price target on shares of Darden Restaurants from $186.00 to $175.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, June 25th. 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. Finally, Wedbush reissued an “outperform” rating and issued a $170.00 price target on shares of Darden Restaurants in a report on Thursday, June 20th. Five investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seventeen have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $174.24.

Insider Activity

In other news, SVP Matthew R. Broad sold 4,707 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, April 25th. The shares were sold at an average price of $156.15, for a total transaction of $734,998.05. Following the sale, the senior vice president now owns 19,179 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,994,800.85. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Insiders own 0.85% of the company’s stock.

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.