Darden Restaurants, Inc. (NYSE:DRI) Stock Position Raised by Coldstream Capital Management Inc.

Coldstream Capital Management Inc. increased its position in Darden Restaurants, Inc. (NYSE:DRI) by 2.9% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 2,874 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock after purchasing an additional 82 shares during the period. Coldstream Capital Management Inc.’s holdings in Darden Restaurants were worth $472,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. raised its position in Darden Restaurants by 2.1% during the third quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 2,576,948 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock valued at $369,070,000 after buying an additional 52,864 shares during the period. Victory Capital Management Inc. grew its stake in Darden Restaurants by 9.6% during the 3rd quarter. Victory Capital Management Inc. now owns 2,290,224 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock valued at $328,006,000 after acquiring an additional 200,342 shares in the last quarter. Raymond James & Associates increased its holdings in shares of Darden Restaurants by 7.3% in the 4th quarter. Raymond James & Associates now owns 1,968,301 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock valued at $323,392,000 after purchasing an additional 134,098 shares during the period. Morgan Stanley lifted its position in shares of Darden Restaurants by 13.8% in the third quarter. Morgan Stanley now owns 1,669,789 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock worth $239,148,000 after purchasing an additional 202,139 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Wellington Management Group LLP boosted its holdings in shares of Darden Restaurants by 0.6% during the third quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 1,639,513 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock worth $234,811,000 after purchasing an additional 9,232 shares during the period. 93.64% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research firms have weighed in on DRI. BTIG Research upgraded shares of Darden Restaurants from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $175.00 price objective on the stock in a research note on Friday, May 17th. Stifel Nicolaus increased their price objective on Darden Restaurants from $185.00 to $190.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, March 19th. Wedbush reduced their price objective on Darden Restaurants from $187.00 to $181.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, March 22nd. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their target price on Darden Restaurants from $170.00 to $180.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Tuesday, March 19th. Finally, BMO Capital Markets raised their price target on shares of Darden Restaurants from $160.00 to $165.00 and gave the company a “market perform” rating in a report on Thursday, March 7th. Five investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and sixteen have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $178.67.

Darden Restaurants Trading Down 0.7 %

Shares of DRI opened at $147.66 on Friday. The stock’s 50-day moving average price is $156.64 and its 200 day moving average price is $160.33. The company has a quick ratio of 0.25, a current ratio of 0.39 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.63. Darden Restaurants, Inc. has a 12-month low of $133.36 and a 12-month high of $176.84. The firm has a market capitalization of $17.62 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 17.31, a P/E/G ratio of 1.64 and a beta of 1.27.

Darden Restaurants (NYSE:DRI) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, March 21st. The restaurant operator reported $2.62 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.63 by ($0.01). The firm had revenue of $2.97 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $3.02 billion. Darden Restaurants had a net margin of 9.24% and a return on equity of 49.94%. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 6.8% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $2.34 earnings per share. As a group, research analysts predict that Darden Restaurants, Inc. will post 8.85 earnings per share for the current year.

Darden Restaurants Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, May 1st. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, April 10th were issued a dividend of $1.31 per share. This represents a $5.24 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.55%. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, April 9th. Darden Restaurants’s payout ratio is 61.43%.

Darden Restaurants announced that its Board of Directors has authorized a stock buyback program on Thursday, March 21st that permits the company to buyback $1.00 billion in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization permits the restaurant operator to purchase up to 5% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback programs are usually a sign that the company’s management believes its shares are undervalued.

Insider Activity

In other Darden Restaurants news, insider Melvin John Martin sold 7,673 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, March 27th. The shares were sold at an average price of $165.52, for a total transaction of $1,270,034.96. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now owns 17,208 shares in the company, valued at $2,848,268.16. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. In other Darden Restaurants news, insider Melvin John Martin sold 7,673 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, March 27th. The stock was sold at an average price of $165.52, for a total value of $1,270,034.96. Following the sale, the insider now directly owns 17,208 shares in the company, valued at $2,848,268.16. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, Director William S. Simon sold 1,219 shares of Darden Restaurants stock in a transaction on Monday, April 8th. The shares were sold at an average price of $158.21, for a total value of $192,857.99. Following the transaction, the director now directly owns 6,281 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $993,717.01. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last three months, insiders have sold 13,599 shares of company stock worth $2,197,891. Corporate insiders own 0.85% of the company’s stock.

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.