Callan Family Office LLC Invests $474,000 in Darden Restaurants, Inc. $DRI

Callan Family Office LLC purchased a new position in shares of Darden Restaurants, Inc. (NYSE:DRI) in the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm purchased 2,174 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock, valued at approximately $474,000.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of the company. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. boosted its holdings in Darden Restaurants by 6.6% in the first quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 3,998,200 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock valued at $830,666,000 after purchasing an additional 247,542 shares during the period. Raymond James Financial Inc. boosted its holdings in Darden Restaurants by 4.6% in the first quarter. Raymond James Financial Inc. now owns 3,601,340 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock valued at $748,215,000 after purchasing an additional 157,305 shares during the period. Hamlin Capital Management LLC boosted its holdings in Darden Restaurants by 17.6% in the first quarter. Hamlin Capital Management LLC now owns 913,398 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock valued at $189,768,000 after purchasing an additional 136,382 shares during the period. UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC boosted its holdings in Darden Restaurants by 6.4% in the first quarter. UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC now owns 625,449 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock valued at $129,943,000 after purchasing an additional 37,878 shares during the period. Finally, Nuveen LLC purchased a new position in Darden Restaurants in the first quarter valued at $84,801,000. 93.64% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research analysts recently issued reports on the company. Wall Street Zen lowered Darden Restaurants from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Friday, June 27th. Bank of America lifted their target price on Darden Restaurants from $253.00 to $254.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, September 16th. BTIG Research decreased their target price on Darden Restaurants from $235.00 to $225.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Friday, September 19th. Robert W. Baird decreased their price target on Darden Restaurants from $230.00 to $208.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a report on Friday, September 19th. Finally, Citigroup lifted their price target on Darden Restaurants from $245.00 to $253.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, June 23rd. Nineteen analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and ten have issued a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Darden Restaurants presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $225.59.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, insider Laura B. Williamson sold 1,157 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, July 30th. The stock was sold at an average price of $204.70, for a total transaction of $236,837.90. Following the transaction, the insider owned 10,632 shares in the company, valued at $2,176,370.40. This trade represents a 9.81% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, SVP Matthew R. Broad sold 5,661 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, October 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $193.40, for a total value of $1,094,837.40. Following the transaction, the senior vice president owned 13,916 shares in the company, valued at $2,691,354.40. This represents a 28.92% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 7,674 shares of company stock worth $1,507,575 in the last 90 days. 0.49% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Darden Restaurants Stock Up 1.0%

Shares of NYSE DRI opened at $186.90 on Wednesday. The company has a market capitalization of $21.74 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 20.03, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.69 and a beta of 0.77. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.96, a current ratio of 0.40 and a quick ratio of 0.27. The business has a 50-day moving average of $200.61 and a two-hundred day moving average of $205.32. Darden Restaurants, Inc. has a 1 year low of $157.01 and a 1 year high of $228.27.

Darden Restaurants (NYSE:DRI) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, September 18th. The restaurant operator reported $1.97 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.01 by ($0.04). The firm had revenue of $3.04 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.03 billion. Darden Restaurants had a net margin of 8.90% and a return on equity of 52.35%. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 10.4% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the company earned $1.75 earnings per share. Darden Restaurants has set its FY 2026 guidance at 10.500-10.700 EPS. On average, analysts forecast that Darden Restaurants, Inc. will post 9.52 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Darden Restaurants Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, November 3rd. Investors of record on Friday, October 10th will be paid a dividend of $1.50 per share. This represents a $6.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.2%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, October 10th. Darden Restaurants’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 64.31%.

Darden Restaurants declared that its Board of Directors has initiated a stock buyback plan on Friday, June 20th that authorizes the company to repurchase $1.00 billion in outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization authorizes the restaurant operator to buy up to 3.8% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase plans are generally a sign that the company’s leadership believes its stock is undervalued.

Darden Restaurants Company Profile

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.