Wells Fargo & Company Issues Positive Forecast for Darden Restaurants (NYSE:DRI) Stock Price

Darden Restaurants (NYSE:DRI) had its target price lifted by Wells Fargo & Company from $180.00 to $200.00 in a research report sent to investors on Friday,Benzinga reports. Wells Fargo & Company currently has an equal weight rating on the restaurant operator’s stock.

A number of other brokerages have also recently weighed in on DRI. Citigroup upped their price target on shares of Darden Restaurants from $223.00 to $229.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday. Oppenheimer boosted their price objective on shares of Darden Restaurants from $218.00 to $230.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Friday. Raymond James boosted their price objective on shares of Darden Restaurants from $200.00 to $210.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Tuesday, January 28th. The Goldman Sachs Group started coverage on shares of Darden Restaurants in a report on Thursday, December 5th. They issued a “neutral” rating and a $183.00 price objective on the stock. Finally, Bank of America boosted their price objective on shares of Darden Restaurants from $230.00 to $238.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Friday. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have assigned a hold rating and sixteen have given a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, Darden Restaurants currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $201.36.

Darden Restaurants Stock Up 0.5 %

Shares of DRI opened at $199.92 on Friday. The firm has a market cap of $23.42 billion, a PE ratio of 22.90, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.15 and a beta of 1.27. The company’s fifty day moving average is $192.08 and its two-hundred day moving average is $176.60. Darden Restaurants has a fifty-two week low of $135.87 and a fifty-two week high of $203.47. The company has a quick ratio of 0.23, a current ratio of 0.37 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.02.

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

Darden Restaurants Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, May 1st. Investors of record on Thursday, April 10th will be given a dividend of $1.40 per share. This represents a $5.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.80%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, April 10th. Darden Restaurants’s dividend payout ratio is presently 64.15%.

Insider Activity at Darden Restaurants

In other Darden Restaurants news, CFO Rajesh Vennam sold 7,228 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated 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 completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer now owns 10,262 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,864,708.02. This represents a 41.33 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Also, insider Todd Burrowes sold 15,783 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, January 14th. The stock was sold at an average price of $183.03, for a total transaction of $2,888,762.49. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now owns 46,288 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $8,472,092.64. This trade represents a 25.43 % 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. Insiders own 0.58% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the company. Kestra Investment Management LLC bought a new position in Darden Restaurants in the 4th quarter worth about $25,000. Compass Wealth Management LLC bought a new position in shares of Darden Restaurants in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $28,000. TCTC Holdings LLC bought a new position in shares of Darden Restaurants in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $28,000. MCF Advisors LLC boosted its holdings 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 acquiring an additional 59 shares in the last quarter. Finally, HHM Wealth Advisors LLC boosted its holdings 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 acquiring an additional 129 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors 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.