Darden Restaurants (NYSE:DRI) Given New $217.00 Price Target at Morgan Stanley

Darden Restaurants (NYSE:DRI) had its price objective hoisted by equities research analysts at Morgan Stanley from $209.00 to $217.00 in a report released on Friday,Benzinga reports. The brokerage presently has an “overweight” rating on the restaurant operator’s stock. Morgan Stanley’s target price would indicate a potential upside of 9.23% from the company’s current price.

A number of other research analysts have also issued reports on the stock. Citigroup dropped their price objective on shares of Darden Restaurants from $209.00 to $206.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, December 4th. KeyCorp lifted their price target on shares of Darden Restaurants from $194.00 to $200.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday, December 20th. Truist Financial boosted their target price on Darden Restaurants from $200.00 to $212.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday. UBS Group upped their price target on shares of Darden Restaurants from $195.00 to $210.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, December 20th. Finally, Robert W. Baird boosted their price objective on Darden Restaurants from $192.00 to $210.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Friday. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have assigned a hold rating and sixteen have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Darden Restaurants presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $196.84.

Darden Restaurants Stock Up 5.6 %

Shares of NYSE DRI opened at $198.66 on Friday. The company has a 50 day simple moving average of $191.67 and a 200 day simple moving average of $176.31. The firm has a market cap of $23.27 billion, a PE ratio of 22.76, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.15 and a beta of 1.27. Darden Restaurants has a 1 year low of $135.87 and a 1 year high of $203.47. 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 (NYSE:DRI) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, March 20th. The restaurant operator reported $2.80 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, meeting analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.80. The business had revenue of $3.16 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.22 billion. Darden Restaurants had a net margin of 9.01% and a return on equity of 50.12%. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 6.2% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the business earned $2.60 EPS. On average, research analysts forecast that Darden Restaurants will post 9.52 EPS for the current year.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, SVP Susan M. Connelly sold 9,264 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Monday, January 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $184.68, for a total value of $1,710,875.52. Following the sale, the senior vice president now directly owns 4,567 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $843,433.56. This represents a 66.98 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, SVP Douglas J. Milanes sold 7,892 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, January 30th. The stock was sold at an average price of $195.95, for a total transaction of $1,546,437.40. Following the sale, the senior vice president now directly owns 3,914 shares in the company, valued at $766,948.30. This represents a 66.85 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 52,926 shares of company stock worth $9,850,129 in the last 90 days. Company insiders own 0.58% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Darden Restaurants

Several hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of DRI. Kestra Investment Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of Darden Restaurants during the fourth quarter worth $25,000. Compass Wealth Management LLC bought a new stake in Darden Restaurants during the fourth quarter valued at $28,000. TCTC Holdings LLC bought a new stake in Darden Restaurants during the fourth quarter valued at $28,000. MCF Advisors LLC increased its stake in Darden Restaurants by 50.9% during the fourth quarter. MCF Advisors LLC now owns 175 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock valued at $33,000 after purchasing an additional 59 shares during the last quarter. Finally, HHM Wealth Advisors LLC increased its stake in Darden Restaurants by 103.2% during the fourth quarter. HHM Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 254 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock valued at $47,000 after purchasing an additional 129 shares during the last quarter. 93.64% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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.