Atlantic Edge Private Wealth Management LLC Decreases Stake in Darden Restaurants, Inc. $DRI

Atlantic Edge Private Wealth Management LLC cut its holdings in Darden Restaurants, Inc. (NYSE:DRI) by 3.9% during the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 11,591 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock after selling 469 shares during the quarter. Atlantic Edge Private Wealth Management LLC’s holdings in Darden Restaurants were worth $2,526,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of DRI. GAMMA Investing LLC boosted its stake in shares of Darden Restaurants by 124.2% in the first quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 4,471 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock valued at $929,000 after buying an additional 2,477 shares in the last quarter. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC boosted its stake in shares of Darden Restaurants by 31.8% in the first quarter. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC now owns 15,230 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock valued at $3,164,000 after buying an additional 3,677 shares in the last quarter. ORG Partners LLC boosted its stake in shares of Darden Restaurants by 108.8% in the first quarter. ORG Partners LLC now owns 142 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock valued at $30,000 after buying an additional 74 shares in the last quarter. Advisor Resource Council purchased a new stake in Darden Restaurants during the first quarter worth $331,000. Finally, Cambridge Investment Research Advisors Inc. boosted its position in Darden Restaurants by 8.9% during the first quarter. Cambridge Investment Research Advisors Inc. now owns 14,489 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock worth $3,010,000 after purchasing an additional 1,186 shares in the last quarter. 93.64% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

DRI has been the topic of a number of research analyst reports. TD Cowen reiterated a “hold” rating and set a $235.00 target price on shares of Darden Restaurants in a research report on Thursday, September 18th. Wall Street Zen downgraded Darden Restaurants from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Friday, June 27th. Raymond James Financial decreased their target price on Darden Restaurants from $230.00 to $210.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, September 19th. Argus decreased their target price on Darden Restaurants from $260.00 to $220.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, September 19th. Finally, Guggenheim boosted their target price on Darden Restaurants from $220.00 to $235.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, September 17th. Twenty analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and nine have given a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $227.15.

Insider Buying and Selling at Darden Restaurants

In related news, insider Laura B. Williamson sold 1,157 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, July 30th. The stock was sold at an average price of $204.70, for a total value of $236,837.90. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider directly owned 10,632 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,176,370.40. This represents a 9.81% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, SVP Matthew R. Broad sold 5,661 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Monday, October 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $193.40, for a total value of $1,094,837.40. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president owned 13,916 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,691,354.40. The trade was a 28.92% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 7,341 shares of company stock valued at $1,438,707 over the last quarter. Insiders own 0.49% of the company’s stock.

Darden Restaurants Stock Performance

NYSE DRI opened at $187.90 on Tuesday. Darden Restaurants, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $157.89 and a fifty-two week high of $228.27. The stock has a market cap of $21.85 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 20.14, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.72 and a beta of 0.77. The business has a fifty day moving average of $199.34 and a 200-day moving average of $204.87. The company has a quick ratio of 0.27, a current ratio of 0.40 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.96.

Darden Restaurants (NYSE:DRI) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, September 18th. The restaurant operator reported $1.97 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.01 by ($0.04). The company had revenue of $3.04 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.03 billion. Darden Restaurants had a return on equity of 52.35% and a net margin of 8.90%.The business’s revenue was up 10.4% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the firm earned $1.75 earnings per share. Darden Restaurants has set its FY 2026 guidance at 10.500-10.700 EPS. As a group, analysts predict that Darden Restaurants, Inc. will post 9.52 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Darden Restaurants Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, November 3rd. Investors of record on Friday, October 10th will be paid a $1.50 dividend. This represents a $6.00 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.2%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, October 10th. Darden Restaurants’s dividend payout ratio is presently 64.31%.

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.