Darden Restaurants, Inc. (NYSE:DRI) Shares Sold by Orion Portfolio Solutions LLC

Orion Portfolio Solutions LLC reduced its holdings in Darden Restaurants, Inc. (NYSE:DRI) by 24.8% during the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 5,410 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock after selling 1,782 shares during the quarter. Orion Portfolio Solutions LLC’s holdings in Darden Restaurants were worth $888,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other large investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in DRI. Farther Finance Advisors LLC grew its stake in shares of Darden Restaurants by 9.8% in the third quarter. Farther Finance Advisors LLC now owns 697 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock worth $114,000 after purchasing an additional 62 shares in the last quarter. Rosenberg Matthew Hamilton lifted its holdings in Darden Restaurants by 11.4% in the third quarter. Rosenberg Matthew Hamilton now owns 676 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock worth $111,000 after purchasing an additional 69 shares during the period. Metis Global Partners LLC grew its position in Darden Restaurants by 1.9% in the 3rd quarter. Metis Global Partners LLC now owns 3,833 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock valued at $629,000 after buying an additional 73 shares in the last quarter. EP Wealth Advisors LLC increased its stake in Darden Restaurants by 5.6% during the 2nd quarter. EP Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 1,418 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock valued at $215,000 after buying an additional 75 shares during the period. Finally, 1620 Investment Advisors Inc. raised its position in shares of Darden Restaurants by 4.4% during the 3rd quarter. 1620 Investment Advisors Inc. now owns 1,835 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock worth $301,000 after buying an additional 78 shares in the last quarter. 93.64% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research analysts have recently issued reports on DRI shares. Piper Sandler increased their price objective on shares of Darden Restaurants from $159.00 to $177.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Friday, September 20th. Citigroup decreased their price target on Darden Restaurants from $209.00 to $206.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, December 4th. Stephens reiterated an “equal weight” rating and set a $164.00 price target on shares of Darden Restaurants in a research report on Monday, December 9th. BMO Capital Markets cut their price objective on Darden Restaurants from $175.00 to $165.00 and set a “market perform” rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, December 10th. Finally, Barclays raised their target price on Darden Restaurants from $180.00 to $192.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday, September 20th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have issued a hold rating and sixteen have given a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Darden Restaurants has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $180.46.

Insider Transactions at Darden Restaurants

In related news, insider Melvin John Martin sold 3,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, October 4th. The stock was sold at an average price of $163.30, for a total value of $489,900.00. Following the transaction, the insider now owns 12,601 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,057,743.30. This represents a 19.23 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, CEO Ricardo Cardenas sold 42,403 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, September 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $171.68, for a total transaction of $7,279,747.04. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 58,685 shares in the company, valued at approximately $10,075,040.80. The trade was a 41.95 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last ninety days, insiders have sold 59,265 shares of company stock valued at $10,116,030. 0.58% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Darden Restaurants Stock Up 1.0 %

Shares of Darden Restaurants stock opened at $166.69 on Monday. Darden Restaurants, Inc. has a 1 year low of $135.87 and a 1 year high of $177.67. The company has a market cap of $19.59 billion, a P/E ratio of 19.23, a P/E/G ratio of 1.90 and a beta of 1.31. The company has a current ratio of 0.35, a quick ratio of 0.22 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.65. The stock has a 50-day moving average price of $165.39 and a 200 day moving average price of $156.54.

Darden Restaurants (NYSE:DRI) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, September 19th. The restaurant operator reported $1.75 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.83 by ($0.08). Darden Restaurants had a return on equity of 49.46% and a net margin of 9.11%. The company had revenue of $2.76 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $2.80 billion. During the same period last year, the company earned $1.78 earnings per share. Darden Restaurants’s revenue for the quarter was up 1.0% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, analysts expect that Darden Restaurants, Inc. will post 9.47 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Darden Restaurants Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, November 1st. Stockholders of record on Thursday, October 10th were issued a dividend of $1.40 per share. This is a boost from Darden Restaurants’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.29. This represents a $5.60 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.36%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, October 10th. Darden Restaurants’s payout ratio is currently 64.59%.

Darden Restaurants 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.