Darden Restaurants (DRI) Projected to Release Quarterly Earnings on Thursday

Darden Restaurants (NYSE:DRI) is projected to post its Q1 2027 results before the market opens on Thursday, September 24th. Analysts expect the company to post earnings of $2.05 per share and revenue of $3.2064 billion for the quarter. Darden Restaurants has set its FY 2027 guidance at 11.100-11.350 EPS. Individuals can find conference call details on the company’s upcoming Q1 2027 earning summary page for the latest details on the call scheduled for Thursday, September 24, 2026 at 8:30 AM ET.

Darden Restaurants (NYSE:DRI) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, June 25th. The restaurant operator reported $3.66 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.63 by $0.03. Darden Restaurants had a return on equity of 57.44% and a net margin of 9.13%.The business had revenue of $3.72 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.73 billion. During the same quarter last year, the company posted $2.98 EPS. Darden Restaurants’s revenue for the quarter was up 13.7% on a year-over-year basis. On average, analysts expect Darden Restaurants to post $11 EPS for the current fiscal year and $12 EPS for the next fiscal year.

Darden Restaurants Stock Up 0.9%

DRI stock opened at $213.30 on Wednesday. Darden Restaurants has a 52-week low of $169.00 and a 52-week high of $229.76. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.74, a current ratio of 0.31 and a quick ratio of 0.21. The firm has a market capitalization of $24.33 billion, a P/E ratio of 20.55, a P/E/G ratio of 1.99 and a beta of 0.60. The company’s 50 day simple moving average is $211.55 and its 200-day simple moving average is $204.68.

Darden Restaurants Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, August 3rd. Investors of record on Friday, July 10th were given a dividend of $1.62 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, July 10th. This is a positive change from Darden Restaurants’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.50. This represents a $6.48 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.0%. Darden Restaurants’s payout ratio is presently 62.43%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, insider Laura Williamson sold 1,110 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, July 31st. The stock was sold at an average price of $204.32, for a total value of $226,795.20. Following the transaction, the insider directly owned 10,754 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,197,257.28. The trade was a 9.36% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, CEO Ricardo Cardenas sold 39,134 shares of Darden Restaurants stock in a transaction on Tuesday, July 28th. The shares were sold at an average price of $209.06, for a total value of $8,181,354.04. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer owned 86,146 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $18,009,682.76. The trade was a 31.24% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Insiders have sold a total of 70,185 shares of company stock valued at $14,636,984 in the last ninety days. 0.67% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of brokerages have recently weighed in on DRI. Argus upped their target price on Darden Restaurants from $240.00 to $245.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, June 30th. Guggenheim boosted their price target on Darden Restaurants from $230.00 to $235.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, June 24th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft upped their price objective on shares of Darden Restaurants from $230.00 to $236.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, June 26th. Bank of America raised their target price on Darden Restaurants from $272.00 to $276.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, June 5th. Finally, UBS Group restated a “buy” rating on shares of Darden Restaurants in a report on Friday, September 11th. Eighteen investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and nine have assigned a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $232.86.

About Darden Restaurants

Darden Restaurants, Inc (NYSE: DRI) is a full-service restaurant company headquartered in Orlando, Florida. It operates and franchises a portfolio of dining brands serving a range of cuisines, price points and occasions, with restaurants primarily located in the United States and select international markets.

Its restaurant portfolio includes Olive Garden, an Italian-American dining chain; LongHorn Steakhouse; Cheddar’s Scratch Kitchen; Yard House; The Capital Grille; Seasons 52; Bahama Breeze; Eddie V’s; Ruth’s Chris Steak House; and Chuy’s.