Generali Asset Management SPA SGR Sells 6,630 Shares of Darden Restaurants, Inc. $DRI

Generali Asset Management SPA SGR trimmed its holdings in shares of Darden Restaurants, Inc. (NYSE:DRI) by 38.6% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 10,565 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock after selling 6,630 shares during the quarter. Generali Asset Management SPA SGR’s holdings in Darden Restaurants were worth $1,944,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Other large investors have also bought and sold shares of the company. Torren Management LLC bought a new stake in Darden Restaurants during the 4th quarter worth approximately $26,000. Quent Capital LLC bought a new stake in Darden Restaurants during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $27,000. Thurston Springer Miller Herd & Titak Inc. increased its stake in Darden Restaurants by 926.7% during the 4th quarter. Thurston Springer Miller Herd & Titak Inc. now owns 154 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock worth $28,000 after purchasing an additional 139 shares in the last quarter. Ameriflex Group Inc. bought a new stake in Darden Restaurants during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $35,000. Finally, Flagship Harbor Advisors LLC bought a new stake in Darden Restaurants during the 4th quarter worth approximately $39,000. 93.64% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Darden Restaurants Stock Performance

Shares of Darden Restaurants stock opened at $196.28 on Friday. The firm has a market cap of $22.48 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 20.77, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.86 and a beta of 0.61. The stock’s 50-day moving average is $200.13 and its 200-day moving average is $194.77. Darden Restaurants, Inc. has a one year low of $169.00 and a one year high of $228.27. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.02, a current ratio of 0.39 and a quick ratio of 0.25.

Darden Restaurants (NYSE:DRI) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, March 19th. The restaurant operator reported $2.95 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.94 by $0.01. The company had revenue of $3.35 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.33 billion. Darden Restaurants had a return on equity of 53.54% and a net margin of 8.66%.The company’s quarterly revenue was up 5.9% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $2.80 earnings per share. Equities analysts predict that Darden Restaurants, Inc. will post 10.61 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Darden Restaurants Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, May 1st. Investors of record on Friday, April 10th were given a $1.50 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, April 10th. This represents a $6.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.1%. Darden Restaurants’s payout ratio is currently 63.49%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of analysts recently issued reports on DRI shares. KeyCorp increased their target price on Darden Restaurants from $225.00 to $226.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday, March 20th. Stephens boosted their price target on Darden Restaurants from $205.00 to $210.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Friday, March 20th. Mizuho upgraded Darden Restaurants from a “neutral” rating to an “outperform” rating and boosted their price target for the company from $195.00 to $235.00 in a report on Friday, January 23rd. Barclays boosted their price target on Darden Restaurants from $227.00 to $232.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, March 20th. Finally, Raymond James Financial restated a “market perform” rating on shares of Darden Restaurants in a report on Wednesday, January 21st. Eighteen equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and nine have issued a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $226.24.

Insider Transactions at Darden Restaurants

In related news, SVP Lindsay L. Koren sold 300 shares of Darden Restaurants stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, April 7th. The stock was sold at an average price of $194.32, for a total value of $58,296.00. Following the sale, the senior vice president owned 1,617 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $314,215.44. The trade was a 15.65% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, SVP Douglas J. Milanes sold 3,620 shares of Darden Restaurants stock in a transaction dated Friday, April 17th. The shares were sold at an average price of $202.16, for a total value of $731,819.20. Following the completion of the sale, the senior vice president directly owned 274 shares in the company, valued at approximately $55,391.84. This represents a 92.96% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. 0.49% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

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.