Harrell Investment Partners LLC Sells 832 Shares of Darden Restaurants, Inc. (NYSE:DRI)

Harrell Investment Partners LLC reduced its stake in Darden Restaurants, Inc. (NYSE:DRI) by 3.5% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 22,686 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock after selling 832 shares during the period. Harrell Investment Partners LLC’s holdings in Darden Restaurants were worth $4,235,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Several other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in DRI. Mizuho Securities USA LLC boosted its stake in shares of Darden Restaurants by 96,162.9% in the third quarter. Mizuho Securities USA LLC now owns 8,861,000 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock valued at $1,454,356,000 after buying an additional 8,851,795 shares during the period. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA raised its position in Darden Restaurants by 111.0% during the third quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA now owns 1,469,083 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock valued at $241,121,000 after purchasing an additional 772,907 shares in the last quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC raised its position in Darden Restaurants by 16,996.9% during the third quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC now owns 377,500 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock valued at $61,959,000 after purchasing an additional 375,292 shares in the last quarter. Healthcare of Ontario Pension Plan Trust Fund acquired a new position in Darden Restaurants during the third quarter valued at approximately $40,048,000. Finally, SG Americas Securities LLC raised its position in Darden Restaurants by 523.9% during the third quarter. SG Americas Securities LLC now owns 194,937 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock valued at $31,995,000 after purchasing an additional 163,693 shares in the last quarter. 93.64% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Darden Restaurants Trading Up 0.8 %

DRI opened at $187.69 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.02, a current ratio of 0.37 and a quick ratio of 0.23. Darden Restaurants, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $135.87 and a fifty-two week high of $189.18. The firm has a market capitalization of $21.99 billion, a PE ratio of 21.50, a P/E/G ratio of 2.05 and a beta of 1.31. The company’s 50-day moving average is $177.44 and its 200 day moving average is $163.52.

Darden Restaurants (NYSE:DRI) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, December 19th. The restaurant operator reported $2.03 earnings per share for the quarter, hitting analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.03. Darden Restaurants had a net margin of 9.01% and a return on equity of 50.12%. The company had revenue of $2.89 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.87 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business posted $1.84 EPS. The firm’s revenue was up 6.0% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, research analysts predict that Darden Restaurants, Inc. will post 9.52 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Darden Restaurants Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, February 3rd. Shareholders of record on Friday, January 10th will be paid a $1.40 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, January 10th. This represents a $5.60 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.98%. Darden Restaurants’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 64.15%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Darden Restaurants

In other Darden Restaurants news, insider Todd Burrowes sold 15,783 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, January 14th. The shares were sold at an average price of $183.03, for a total value of $2,888,762.49. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now owns 46,288 shares in the company, valued at approximately $8,472,092.64. This trade represents a 25.43 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, CFO Rajesh Vennam sold 7,228 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Monday, December 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $181.71, for a total transaction of $1,313,399.88. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer now owns 10,262 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,864,708.02. This trade represents a 41.33 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last 90 days, insiders sold 45,034 shares of company stock worth $8,303,692. Insiders own 0.58% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research analysts have commented on the stock. Truist Financial boosted their price objective on shares of Darden Restaurants from $195.00 to $200.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, December 20th. Oppenheimer upped their price target on shares of Darden Restaurants from $200.00 to $218.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Tuesday, January 7th. Barclays upped their price target on shares of Darden Restaurants from $206.00 to $230.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Tuesday, January 7th. Stifel Nicolaus upped their price target on shares of Darden Restaurants from $190.00 to $205.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, December 20th. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group started coverage on shares of Darden Restaurants in a report on Thursday, December 5th. They set a “neutral” rating and a $183.00 price target for the company. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have issued a hold rating and seventeen have given a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $190.52.

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.