Darden Restaurants, Inc. $DRI Shares Bought by Kentucky Retirement Systems

Kentucky Retirement Systems grew its stake in Darden Restaurants, Inc. (NYSE:DRI) by 47.0% during the 1st quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 10,780 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock after acquiring an additional 3,445 shares during the quarter. Kentucky Retirement Systems’ holdings in Darden Restaurants were worth $2,113,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other large investors have also made changes to their positions in DRI. Torren Management LLC purchased a new position in Darden Restaurants in the 4th quarter valued at about $26,000. Union Savings Bank purchased a new stake in shares of Darden Restaurants during the fourth quarter worth about $28,000. Thurston Springer Miller Herd & Titak Inc. raised its position in shares of Darden Restaurants by 926.7% in the fourth quarter. Thurston Springer Miller Herd & Titak Inc. now owns 154 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock valued at $28,000 after buying an additional 139 shares during the last quarter. BOK Financial Private Wealth Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Darden Restaurants in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $29,000. Finally, DV Equities LLC purchased a new position in shares of Darden Restaurants during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $30,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 93.64% of the company’s stock.

Darden Restaurants Stock Down 2.4%

Shares of NYSE:DRI opened at $207.09 on Friday. The stock has a 50-day simple moving average of $203.73 and a 200-day simple moving average of $203.18. The stock has a market capitalization of $23.62 billion, a P/E ratio of 19.95, a PEG ratio of 2.11 and a beta of 0.60. Darden Restaurants, Inc. has a 1 year low of $169.00 and a 1 year high of $220.65. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.74, a quick ratio of 0.21 and a current ratio of 0.31.

Darden Restaurants (NYSE:DRI) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, June 25th. The restaurant operator reported $3.66 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $3.63 by $0.03. The firm had revenue of $3.72 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.73 billion. Darden Restaurants had a net margin of 9.13% and a return on equity of 57.44%. Darden Restaurants’s revenue for the quarter was up 13.7% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $2.98 earnings per share. Darden Restaurants has set its FY 2027 guidance at 11.100-11.350 EPS. Equities analysts forecast that Darden Restaurants, Inc. will post 11.28 earnings per share for the current year.

Darden Restaurants Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, August 3rd. Stockholders of record on Friday, July 10th will be paid a $1.62 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, July 10th. This represents a $6.48 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.1%. This is a boost from Darden Restaurants’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.50. Darden Restaurants’s payout ratio is 62.43%.

Insider Activity at Darden Restaurants

In related news, CFO Rajesh Vennam sold 8,478 shares of the stock in a transaction on Wednesday, July 29th. The stock was sold at an average price of $210.00, for a total value of $1,780,380.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer directly owned 8,569 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,799,490. This represents a 49.73% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, SVP Susan M. Connelly sold 9,930 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, July 7th. The shares were sold at an average price of $206.21, for a total value of $2,047,665.30. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president directly owned 4,165 shares in the company, valued at $858,864.65. This trade represents a 70.45% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. In the last 90 days, insiders have sold 59,768 shares of company stock worth $12,472,786. 0.49% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of brokerages recently issued reports on DRI. Citigroup raised their target price on shares of Darden Restaurants from $238.00 to $245.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, June 15th. Argus boosted their price target on Darden Restaurants from $240.00 to $245.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, June 30th. KeyCorp increased their price target on Darden Restaurants from $226.00 to $228.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, May 27th. BTIG Research raised their price objective on Darden Restaurants from $225.00 to $235.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, June 26th. Finally, Oppenheimer restated an “outperform” rating and set a $235.00 price objective on shares of Darden Restaurants in a report on Thursday, June 18th. Seventeen research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and ten have assigned a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $228.88.

More Darden Restaurants News

Here are the key news stories impacting Darden Restaurants this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Brokerages maintain a consensus “Moderate Buy” recommendation, suggesting analysts generally view Darden’s long-term outlook favorably. Darden Receives Moderate Buy Recommendation
• Positive Sentiment: LongHorn Steakhouse reportedly delivered strong momentum, with sales jumping 9.5%, supporting Darden’s strategy of relying on higher-growth brands to drive expansion. Darden CEO Sold Shares as LongHorn Jumped and Olive Garden Lagged
• Neutral Sentiment: Darden is pursuing a leaner growth path, which could improve efficiency and returns but may also signal a more measured expansion strategy. Darden Tests a Leaner Growth Path
• Negative Sentiment: CEO Ricardo Cardenas sold 39,134 shares for approximately $8.2 million after exercising options, reducing his direct holdings by about 31%. While the option-related structure may make the sale less concerning, the sizable transaction can weigh on sentiment. CEO Form 4 Filing
• Negative Sentiment: CFO Rajesh Vennam sold 8,478 shares worth about $1.8 million, cutting his position nearly 50%, while SVP Susan Connelly sold 2,226 shares. Multiple senior-executive sales may reinforce near-term selling pressure. Darden Insider Transactions
• Negative Sentiment: Olive Garden, Darden’s largest brand, lagged LongHorn, highlighting uneven brand performance and potential concerns about traffic and growth at the company’s core business. Brand Performance Report

About Darden Restaurants

Darden Restaurants, Inc is a multi-brand, full-service restaurant company headquartered in Orlando, Florida. The company owns and operates a portfolio of casual and fine-dining concepts that together serve millions of guests through company-owned and franchised locations. Its well-known brands include Olive Garden and LongHorn Steakhouse, alongside other dining concepts that span Italian, American, steakhouse and upscale casual formats.

Darden’s restaurants provide a range of guest-facing services including dine-in, takeout, delivery and catering, and feature menus tailored to each brand’s positioning—Italian-American fare at Olive Garden, steaks and grilled items at LongHorn, and more premium steakhouse and chef-driven offerings at its upscale concepts.