Darden Restaurants, Inc. (NYSE:DRI) Stock Now Rated “Moderate Buy” by Sell-Side Analysts

Darden Restaurants, Inc. (NYSE:DRI) has received a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” from the twenty-five ratings firms that are covering the stock, MarketBeat.com reports. Nine investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and sixteen have issued a buy rating on the company. The average 12-month price objective among analysts that have covered the stock in the last year is $232.82.

A number of analysts have issued reports on DRI shares. Seaport Research Partners initiated coverage on Darden Restaurants in a report on Wednesday, September 16th. They set a “buy” rating and a $240.00 price target for the company. Weiss Ratings raised Darden Restaurants from a “buy (b-)” rating to a “buy (b)” rating in a report on Tuesday, October 20th. BTIG Research reiterated a “buy” rating and set a $235.00 price target on shares of Darden Restaurants in a research note on Friday, September 25th. Robert W. Baird upgraded Darden Restaurants from a “neutral” rating to an “outperform” rating and lifted their target price for the company from $220.00 to $250.00 in a research note on Monday, August 24th. Finally, Sanford C. Bernstein reiterated an “outperform” rating and issued a $230.00 price objective on shares of Darden Restaurants in a research report on Friday, September 25th.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Darden Restaurants

Hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. BlackRock Inc. purchased a new stake in Darden Restaurants during the 2nd quarter worth about $2,015,109,000. Bank of America Corp DE purchased a new position in Darden Restaurants in the 2nd quarter valued at about $651,813,000. Bank of New York Mellon Corp purchased a new position in Darden Restaurants in the 2nd quarter valued at about $204,099,000. Legal & General Group Plc acquired a new stake in shares of Darden Restaurants during the 2nd quarter worth about $118,824,000. Finally, Deutsche Bank AG acquired a new stake in shares of Darden Restaurants during the 2nd quarter worth about $103,322,000. 93.64% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Darden Restaurants Price Performance

Shares of DRI opened at $229.11 on Friday. Darden Restaurants has a 1-year low of $169.00 and a 1-year high of $233.98. The stock has a market cap of $25.92 billion, a PE ratio of 22.40, a P/E/G ratio of 2.14 and a beta of 0.65. The firm has a 50-day simple moving average of $212.01 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $206.59. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.79, a current ratio of 0.30 and a quick ratio of 0.20.

Darden Restaurants (NYSE:DRI) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, September 24th. The restaurant operator reported $2.05 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, meeting analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.05. The business had revenue of $3.20 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $3.21 billion. Darden Restaurants had a net margin of 8.85% and a return on equity of 58.64%. The business’s revenue was up 5.1% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned $1.97 EPS. Darden Restaurants has set its FY 2027 guidance at 11.100-11.350 EPS. As a group, analysts forecast that Darden Restaurants will post 11.24 EPS for the current year.

Darden Restaurants Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, November 2nd. Shareholders of record on Friday, October 9th were given a dividend of $1.62 per share. This represents a $6.48 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.8%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, October 9th. Darden Restaurants’s dividend payout ratio is presently 63.34%.

Darden Restaurants Company Profile

Darden Restaurants, Inc. is a full-service restaurant company that owns and operates dining brands serving a range of cuisines and occasions. Its portfolio includes Olive Garden, LongHorn Steakhouse, Cheddar’s Scratch Kitchen, Yard House, The Capital Grille, Seasons 52, Eddie V’s and Ruth’s Chris Steak House. The company traces its roots to 1938, when founder Bill Darden opened a restaurant in Georgia. It later established the Red Lobster chain, which it operated for decades before selling the brand in 2014.