Financial Survey: Darden Restaurants (NYSE:DRI) versus Giggles N’ Hugs (OTCMKTS:GIGL)

Giggles N’ Hugs (OTCMKTS:GIGL) and Darden Restaurants (NYSE:DRI) are both retail/wholesale companies, but which is the better investment? We will compare the two businesses based on the strength of their risk, valuation, institutional ownership, analyst recommendations, earnings, profitability and dividends.

Earnings & Valuation

This table compares Giggles N’ Hugs and Darden Restaurants”s gross revenue, earnings per share (EPS) and valuation.

	Gross Revenue	Price/Sales Ratio	Net Income	Earnings Per Share	Price/Earnings Ratio
Giggles N’ Hugs	N/A	N/A	N/A	N/A	N/A
Darden Restaurants	$13.21 billion	1.81	$1.21 billion	$10.38	20.06

Darden Restaurants has higher revenue and earnings than Giggles N’ Hugs.

Profitability

This table compares Giggles N’ Hugs and Darden Restaurants’ net margins, return on equity and return on assets.

	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
Giggles N’ Hugs	N/A	N/A	N/A
Darden Restaurants	9.13%	57.44%	9.62%

Dividends

Giggles N’ Hugs pays an annual dividend of $2.10 per share and has a dividend yield of 4.2%. Darden Restaurants pays an annual dividend of $6.00 per share and has a dividend yield of 2.9%. Darden Restaurants pays out 57.8% of its earnings in the form of a dividend. Darden Restaurants has increased its dividend for 4 consecutive years.

Risk and Volatility

Giggles N’ Hugs has a beta of -0.34, indicating that its stock price is 134% less volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, Darden Restaurants has a beta of 0.6, indicating that its stock price is 40% less volatile than the S&P 500.

Insider & Institutional Ownership

93.6% of Darden Restaurants shares are held by institutional investors. 0.5% of Darden Restaurants shares are held by insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that large money managers, hedge funds and endowments believe a company is poised for long-term growth.

Analyst Recommendations

This is a summary of recent ratings and price targets for Giggles N’ Hugs and Darden Restaurants, as provided by MarketBeat.

	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
Giggles N’ Hugs	0	0	0	0	0.00
Darden Restaurants	0	10	17	0	2.63

Darden Restaurants has a consensus target price of $229.32, suggesting a potential upside of 10.11%. Given Darden Restaurants’ stronger consensus rating and higher probable upside, analysts clearly believe Darden Restaurants is more favorable than Giggles N’ Hugs.

Summary

Darden Restaurants beats Giggles N’ Hugs on 11 of the 13 factors compared between the two stocks.

About Giggles N’ Hugs

Giggles N’ Hugs, Inc. engages in the ownership and operation of restaurants. It offers an upscale family-friendly atmosphere with a play area dedicated to children ages 10 and younger. The restaurant has a menu made from fresh, organic foods with the play elements and entertainment. The company was founded by Joey Parsi and Dorsa Foroughi on September 17, 2004 and is headquartered in Los Angeles, CA.

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. Darden Restaurants, Inc. was incorporated in 1995 and is based in Orlando, Florida.