Darden Restaurants, Inc. (NYSE:DRI) Short Interest Update

Darden Restaurants, Inc. (NYSE:DRI) was the recipient of a significant increase in short interest in September. As of September 30th, there was short interest totalling 6,050,000 shares, an increase of 6.7% from the September 15th total of 5,670,000 shares. Approximately 5.2% of the shares of the stock are short sold. Based on an average daily trading volume, of 1,340,000 shares, the short-interest ratio is presently 4.5 days.

Darden Restaurants Stock Up 0.8 %

Shares of DRI traded up $1.29 during mid-day trading on Thursday, hitting $164.22. 911,202 shares of the company’s stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,238,387. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.65, a current ratio of 0.35 and a quick ratio of 0.22. Darden Restaurants has a 52 week low of $135.87 and a 52 week high of $176.84. The company has a market cap of $19.60 billion, a PE ratio of 19.27, a P/E/G ratio of 1.83 and a beta of 1.30. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $158.24 and a 200 day simple moving average of $152.54.

Darden Restaurants (NYSE:DRI) last released its earnings results on Thursday, September 19th. The restaurant operator reported $1.75 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.83 by ($0.08). Darden Restaurants had a net margin of 9.11% and a return on equity of 49.46%. The business had revenue of $2.76 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.80 billion. During the same period last year, the business posted $1.78 EPS. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 1.0% on a year-over-year basis. On average, research analysts forecast that Darden Restaurants will post 9.47 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Darden Restaurants Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, November 1st. Investors of record on Thursday, October 10th will be paid a $1.40 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, October 10th. This is a boost from Darden Restaurants’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.29. This represents a $5.60 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.41%. Darden Restaurants’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 65.73%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

DRI has been the subject of several recent research reports. Bank of America boosted their price objective on Darden Restaurants from $184.00 to $195.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, September 20th. KeyCorp boosted their price target on shares of Darden Restaurants from $170.00 to $194.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday, September 20th. Barclays raised their price objective on shares of Darden Restaurants from $180.00 to $192.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday, September 20th. BTIG Research boosted their target price on Darden Restaurants from $175.00 to $195.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, September 20th. Finally, Truist Financial upped their price target on Darden Restaurants from $185.00 to $195.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, September 20th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have issued a hold rating and seventeen have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, Darden Restaurants presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $179.25.

Insider Buying and Selling at Darden Restaurants

In related news, insider Melvin John Martin sold 3,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Friday, October 4th. The stock was sold at an average price of $163.30, for a total transaction of $489,900.00. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now directly owns 12,601 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,057,743.30. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. In other news, SVP Douglas J. Milanes sold 5,705 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, September 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $172.04, for a total transaction of $981,488.20. Following the transaction, the senior vice president now directly owns 3,834 shares in the company, valued at approximately $659,601.36. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, insider Melvin John Martin sold 3,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, October 4th. The shares were sold at an average price of $163.30, for a total transaction of $489,900.00. Following the sale, the insider now directly owns 12,601 shares in the company, valued at $2,057,743.30. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 77,706 shares of company stock worth $12,813,038 over the last ninety days. Corporate insiders own 0.85% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Darden Restaurants

A number of institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in DRI. Rise Advisors LLC increased its stake in shares of Darden Restaurants by 131.3% during the 1st quarter. Rise Advisors LLC now owns 155 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock worth $26,000 after purchasing an additional 88 shares during the last quarter. ESL Trust Services LLC acquired a new position in Darden Restaurants during the first quarter worth approximately $27,000. Meeder Asset Management Inc. acquired a new position in Darden Restaurants during the second quarter worth approximately $27,000. Wolff Wiese Magana LLC raised its stake in Darden Restaurants by 1,690.9% in the third quarter. Wolff Wiese Magana LLC now owns 197 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock valued at $32,000 after buying an additional 186 shares during the period. Finally, Kimelman & Baird LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Darden Restaurants in the second quarter valued at approximately $30,000. 93.64% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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.