Hamlin Capital Management LLC Raises Stock Holdings in Darden Restaurants, Inc. (NYSE:DRI)

Hamlin Capital Management LLC increased its holdings in Darden Restaurants, Inc. (NYSE:DRI) by 11.2% during the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 777,933 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock after purchasing an additional 78,324 shares during the period. Darden Restaurants makes up about 3.2% of Hamlin Capital Management LLC’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 22nd largest position. Hamlin Capital Management LLC’s holdings in Darden Restaurants were worth $127,682,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other large investors also recently bought and sold shares of the business. ESL Trust Services LLC purchased a new position in shares of Darden Restaurants in the 1st quarter worth approximately $27,000. Meeder Asset Management Inc. purchased a new position in Darden Restaurants during the second quarter worth $27,000. Kimelman & Baird LLC bought a new position in Darden Restaurants during the second quarter valued at $30,000. Innealta Capital LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Darden Restaurants in the second quarter valued at $31,000. Finally, Wolff Wiese Magana LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Darden Restaurants by 1,690.9% in the 3rd quarter. Wolff Wiese Magana LLC now owns 197 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock worth $32,000 after acquiring an additional 186 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 93.64% of the company’s stock.

Insider Activity at Darden Restaurants

In other Darden Restaurants news, SVP Sarah H. King sold 15,941 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, July 30th. The stock was sold at an average price of $147.06, for a total value of $2,344,283.46. Following the completion of the sale, the senior vice president now owns 447 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $65,735.82. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. In related news, insider Laura B. Williamson sold 1,666 shares of Darden Restaurants stock in a transaction dated Monday, September 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $172.00, for a total transaction of $286,552.00. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now owns 5,334 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $917,448. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, SVP Sarah H. King sold 15,941 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, July 30th. The shares were sold at an average price of $147.06, for a total value of $2,344,283.46. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president now directly owns 447 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $65,735.82. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 75,206 shares of company stock valued at $12,460,313 in the last ninety days. Corporate insiders own 0.85% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several brokerages recently commented on DRI. Sanford C. Bernstein downgraded shares of Darden Restaurants from an “outperform” rating to a “market perform” rating and cut their price target for the company from $190.00 to $180.00 in a report on Friday, September 20th. KeyCorp increased their price target on Darden Restaurants from $170.00 to $194.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, September 20th. Barclays boosted their price objective on Darden Restaurants from $180.00 to $192.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, September 20th. Truist Financial increased their target price on Darden Restaurants from $185.00 to $195.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, September 20th. Finally, Stephens reissued an “equal weight” rating and set a $164.00 target price on shares of Darden Restaurants in a research note on Monday, October 14th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have given a hold rating and sixteen have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Darden Restaurants currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $180.13.

Darden Restaurants Trading Down 1.6 %

DRI opened at $159.92 on Friday. Darden Restaurants, Inc. has a 12 month low of $135.87 and a 12 month high of $176.84. The stock has a fifty day moving average price of $160.58 and a 200-day moving average price of $152.56. The firm has a market cap of $19.09 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 18.77, a PEG ratio of 1.83 and a beta of 1.30. The company has a current ratio of 0.35, a quick ratio of 0.22 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.65.

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

Darden Restaurants Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, November 1st. Investors of record on Thursday, October 10th will be given a dividend of $1.40 per share. This is a positive change from Darden Restaurants’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.29. This represents a $5.60 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.50%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, October 10th. Darden Restaurants’s dividend payout ratio is currently 65.73%.

About Darden Restaurants

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.