BMO Capital Markets Issues Positive Forecast for Darden Restaurants (NYSE:DRI) Stock Price

Darden Restaurants (NYSE:DRI) had its price objective upped by BMO Capital Markets from $175.00 to $190.00 in a research report released on Friday morning,Benzinga reports. BMO Capital Markets currently has a market perform rating on the restaurant operator’s stock.

A number of other brokerages have also weighed in on DRI. Citigroup decreased their target price on Darden Restaurants from $209.00 to $206.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, December 4th. Oppenheimer lifted their target price on Darden Restaurants from $218.00 to $230.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Friday. Raymond James lifted their price target on Darden Restaurants from $200.00 to $210.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Tuesday, January 28th. TD Securities lifted their price target on Darden Restaurants from $180.00 to $190.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a report on Friday. Finally, Morgan Stanley lifted their price target on Darden Restaurants from $209.00 to $217.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have given a hold rating and sixteen have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Darden Restaurants presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $201.36.

Darden Restaurants Price Performance

Shares of DRI stock opened at $199.92 on Friday. Darden Restaurants has a 52-week low of $135.87 and a 52-week high of $203.47. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.02, a quick ratio of 0.23 and a current ratio of 0.37. The firm has a market capitalization of $23.42 billion, a P/E ratio of 22.90, a P/E/G ratio of 2.15 and a beta of 1.27. The stock has a 50 day moving average price of $192.08 and a 200 day moving average price of $176.60.

Darden Restaurants (NYSE:DRI) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, March 20th. The restaurant operator reported $2.80 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, hitting analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.80. Darden Restaurants had a return on equity of 50.12% and a net margin of 9.01%. The firm had revenue of $3.16 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.22 billion. During the same period last year, the company earned $2.60 EPS. Darden Restaurants’s quarterly revenue was up 6.2% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, sell-side analysts predict that Darden Restaurants will post 9.52 earnings per share for the current year.

Darden Restaurants Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, May 1st. Stockholders of record on Thursday, April 10th will be issued a $1.40 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, April 10th. This represents a $5.60 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.80%. Darden Restaurants’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 64.15%.

Insider Activity

In related news, SVP Douglas J. Milanes sold 7,892 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, January 30th. The stock was sold at an average price of $195.95, for a total value of $1,546,437.40. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president now owns 3,914 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $766,948.30. This represents a 66.85 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, CFO Rajesh Vennam sold 7,228 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, December 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $181.71, for a total value of $1,313,399.88. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer now directly owns 10,262 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,864,708.02. The trade was a 41.33 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 52,926 shares of company stock valued at $9,850,129 in the last quarter. 0.58% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Darden Restaurants

Hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the company. Kestra Investment Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of Darden Restaurants during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $25,000. Compass Wealth Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of Darden Restaurants during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $28,000. TCTC Holdings LLC acquired a new position in shares of Darden Restaurants during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $28,000. MCF Advisors LLC grew its position in shares of Darden Restaurants by 50.9% in 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 in the last quarter. Finally, HHM Wealth Advisors LLC grew its position in shares of Darden Restaurants by 103.2% in 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 in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 93.64% of the company’s stock.

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.