Darden Restaurants, Inc. $DRI Shares Sold by Bahl & Gaynor LLC

Bahl & Gaynor LLC decreased its holdings in shares of Darden Restaurants, Inc. (NYSE:DRI) by 2.3% during the 3rd quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The firm owned 985,009 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock after selling 22,796 shares during the period. Darden Restaurants makes up approximately 0.9% of Bahl & Gaynor LLC’s portfolio, making the stock its 28th largest position. Bahl & Gaynor LLC’s holdings in Darden Restaurants were worth $190,353,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Several other hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of the business. BlackRock Inc. bought a new position in Darden Restaurants during the second quarter valued at about $2,015,109,000. Bank of America Corp DE bought a new stake in Darden Restaurants during the second quarter worth approximately $651,813,000. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP boosted its position in Darden Restaurants by 2.8% during the first quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 1,265,473 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock worth $248,083,000 after purchasing an additional 33,965 shares during the period. Bank of New York Mellon Corp bought a new stake in Darden Restaurants during the second quarter worth approximately $204,099,000. Finally, UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC grew its holdings in Darden Restaurants by 14.9% during the second quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC now owns 685,636 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock valued at $141,248,000 after purchasing an additional 89,157 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 93.64% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of analysts have recently weighed in on the stock. BTIG Research restated a “buy” rating and issued a $235.00 price objective on shares of Darden Restaurants in a research note on Friday, September 25th. Weiss Ratings upgraded shares of Darden Restaurants from a “buy (b-)” rating to a “buy (b)” rating in a report on Tuesday, October 20th. TD Cowen reissued a “hold” rating and set a $215.00 target price on shares of Darden Restaurants in a research report on Thursday, September 24th. Seaport Research Partners began coverage on shares of Darden Restaurants in a report on Wednesday, September 16th. They set a “buy” rating and a $240.00 price target for the company. Finally, Sanford C. Bernstein reissued an “outperform” rating and set a $230.00 price objective on shares of Darden Restaurants in a research report on Friday, September 25th. Sixteen research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and nine have given a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Darden Restaurants presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $232.82.

Darden Restaurants Stock Down 0.6%

DRI stock opened at $228.36 on Wednesday. Darden Restaurants, Inc. has a twelve month low of $169.00 and a twelve month high of $233.98. The company has a quick ratio of 0.20, a current ratio of 0.30 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.79. The company has a market cap of $25.84 billion, a PE ratio of 22.32, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.15 and a beta of 0.65. The business’s 50-day simple moving average is $211.74 and its 200 day simple moving average is $206.48.

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

Darden Restaurants Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, November 2nd. Investors of record on Friday, October 9th were paid a $1.62 dividend. This represents a $6.48 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend 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.