Darden Restaurants (NYSE:DRI) Announces Quarterly Earnings Results, Meets Estimates

Darden Restaurants (NYSE:DRI) issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday. The restaurant operator reported $2.05 EPS for the quarter, meeting the consensus estimate of $2.05, Zacks reports. Darden Restaurants had a return on equity of 57.44% and a net margin of 9.13%. Darden Restaurants updated its FY 2027 guidance to 11.100-11.350 EPS.

Darden Restaurants Trading Down 0.0%

Shares of Darden Restaurants stock opened at $213.46 on Thursday. The business has a fifty day simple moving average of $211.90 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $204.73. Darden Restaurants has a 1 year low of $169.00 and a 1 year high of $229.76. The company has a market capitalization of $24.35 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 20.56, a P/E/G ratio of 2.01 and a beta of 0.60. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.74, a current ratio of 0.31 and a quick ratio of 0.21.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

DRI has been the topic of a number of analyst reports. BMO Capital Markets reiterated a “market perform” rating on shares of Darden Restaurants in a research note on Monday, June 22nd. Guggenheim boosted their target price on shares of Darden Restaurants from $230.00 to $235.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, June 24th. TD Cowen reaffirmed a “hold” rating and set a $215.00 price target on shares of Darden Restaurants in a research report on Thursday. Argus upped their price target on shares of Darden Restaurants from $240.00 to $245.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, June 30th. Finally, Robert W. Baird upgraded shares of Darden Restaurants from a “neutral” rating to an “outperform” rating and increased their price target for the company from $220.00 to $250.00 in a research note on Monday, August 24th. Eighteen investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and nine have given a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $232.09.

Key Stories Impacting Darden Restaurants

Here are the key news stories impacting Darden Restaurants this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Darden reported fiscal 2027 first-quarter results, declared its quarterly dividend and reaffirmed its full-year outlook. The combination of ongoing profitability and shareholder returns provides reassurance ahead of the company’s broader fiscal-year performance. Darden Restaurants Reports Fiscal 2027 First Quarter Results
• Positive Sentiment: Bank of America raised its estimate for LongHorn’s first-quarter same-store sales growth to 6.5% from 4.2%, citing sustained market-share gains and stronger category trends. This suggests LongHorn remains a key growth engine for Darden. Darden sales momentum strengthens despite casual-dining slowdown
• Neutral Sentiment: Darden updated fiscal 2027 EPS guidance to $11.10–$11.35, compared with the $11.28 consensus estimate. The range broadly brackets expectations, but its $11.225 midpoint is slightly below consensus, limiting the upside surprise.
• Neutral Sentiment: The stock had already been trading above both its 50-day and 200-day moving averages, indicating relatively strong momentum but also leaving investors focused on whether the earnings report and outlook justify its valuation.
• Negative Sentiment: Analysts lowered their Olive Garden expectations amid a broader casual-dining slowdown. Since Olive Garden is a major Darden brand, weaker performance there could offset LongHorn’s market-share gains. Darden sales momentum strengthens despite casual-dining slowdown

Insider Transactions at Darden Restaurants

In other Darden Restaurants news, CEO Ricardo Cardenas sold 39,134 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, July 28th. The shares were sold at an average price of $209.06, for a total value of $8,181,354.04. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer directly owned 86,146 shares in the company, valued at $18,009,682.76. The trade was a 31.24% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, insider John Wilkerson sold 8,864 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, August 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $208.33, for a total transaction of $1,846,637.12. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider directly owned 18,794 shares in the company, valued at $3,915,354.02. The trade was a 32.05% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Over the last 90 days, insiders sold 70,185 shares of company stock valued at $14,636,984. Corporate insiders own 0.67% of the company’s stock.

About Darden Restaurants

Darden Restaurants, Inc (NYSE: DRI) is a full-service restaurant company headquartered in Orlando, Florida. It operates and franchises a portfolio of dining brands serving a range of cuisines, price points and occasions, with restaurants primarily located in the United States and select international markets.

Its restaurant portfolio includes Olive Garden, an Italian-American dining chain; LongHorn Steakhouse; Cheddar’s Scratch Kitchen; Yard House; The Capital Grille; Seasons 52; Bahama Breeze; Eddie V’s; Ruth’s Chris Steak House; and Chuy’s.