Levin Capital Strategies L.P. Purchases New Holdings in Darden Restaurants, Inc. $DRI

Levin Capital Strategies L.P. purchased a new position in shares of Darden Restaurants, Inc. (NYSE:DRI) during the first quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm purchased 30,909 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock, valued at approximately $6,059,000.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of the business. Torren Management LLC bought a new stake in shares of Darden Restaurants during the 4th quarter worth $26,000. Union Savings Bank purchased a new position in shares of Darden Restaurants in the 4th quarter worth about $28,000. Thurston Springer Miller Herd & Titak Inc. grew its position in Darden Restaurants by 926.7% during the fourth quarter. Thurston Springer Miller Herd & Titak Inc. now owns 154 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock valued at $28,000 after buying an additional 139 shares during the period. BOK Financial Private Wealth Inc. bought a new position in Darden Restaurants during the fourth quarter valued at about $29,000. Finally, DV Equities LLC purchased a new stake in Darden Restaurants during the fourth quarter worth about $30,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 93.64% of the company’s stock.

Insider Activity

In related news, SVP Susan M. Connelly sold 9,930 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, July 7th. The stock was sold at an average price of $206.21, for a total transaction of $2,047,665.30. Following the sale, the senior vice president directly owned 4,165 shares in the company, valued at approximately $858,864.65. The trade was a 70.45% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Insiders own 0.49% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

DRI has been the topic of a number of research analyst reports. Guggenheim boosted their target price on shares of Darden Restaurants from $230.00 to $235.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, June 24th. BMO Capital Markets reaffirmed a “market perform” rating on shares of Darden Restaurants in a report on Monday, June 22nd. Bank of America lifted their price target on shares of Darden Restaurants from $272.00 to $276.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, June 5th. Robert W. Baird upped their price objective on Darden Restaurants from $210.00 to $220.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Friday, June 26th. Finally, BTIG Research increased their price objective on Darden Restaurants from $225.00 to $235.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, June 26th. Seventeen analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and ten have issued a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $228.88.

Darden Restaurants Price Performance

DRI opened at $193.91 on Thursday. The firm has a 50-day moving average price of $202.77 and a 200-day moving average price of $202.93. Darden Restaurants, Inc. has a twelve month low of $169.00 and a twelve month high of $220.65. The company has a quick ratio of 0.21, a current ratio of 0.31 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.74. The company has a market capitalization of $22.21 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 18.68, a PEG ratio of 1.92 and a beta of 0.60.

Darden Restaurants (NYSE:DRI) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, June 25th. The restaurant operator reported $3.66 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.63 by $0.03. Darden Restaurants had a net margin of 9.13% and a return on equity of 57.44%. The company had revenue of $3.72 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $3.73 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $2.98 EPS. Darden Restaurants’s revenue was up 13.7% compared to the same quarter last year. Darden Restaurants has set its FY 2027 guidance at 11.100-11.350 EPS. Equities analysts expect that Darden Restaurants, Inc. will post 11.28 EPS for the current year.

Darden Restaurants Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, August 3rd. Stockholders of record on Friday, July 10th will be given a $1.62 dividend. This represents a $6.48 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.3%. This is a boost from Darden Restaurants’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.50. The ex-dividend date is Friday, July 10th. Darden Restaurants’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 62.43%.

Darden Restaurants Profile

Darden Restaurants, Inc is a multi-brand, full-service restaurant company headquartered in Orlando, Florida. The company owns and operates a portfolio of casual and fine-dining concepts that together serve millions of guests through company-owned and franchised locations. Its well-known brands include Olive Garden and LongHorn Steakhouse, alongside other dining concepts that span Italian, American, steakhouse and upscale casual formats.

Darden’s restaurants provide a range of guest-facing services including dine-in, takeout, delivery and catering, and feature menus tailored to each brand’s positioning—Italian-American fare at Olive Garden, steaks and grilled items at LongHorn, and more premium steakhouse and chef-driven offerings at its upscale concepts.