Dynamic Technology Lab Private Ltd Boosts Stock Position in Darden Restaurants, Inc. $DRI

Dynamic Technology Lab Private Ltd raised its holdings in Darden Restaurants, Inc. (NYSE:DRI) by 295.2% in the first quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The firm owned 9,026 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock after purchasing an additional 6,742 shares during the period. Dynamic Technology Lab Private Ltd’s holdings in Darden Restaurants were worth $1,875,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

A number of other hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in DRI. Teza Capital Management LLC grew its position in Darden Restaurants by 166.8% during the first quarter. Teza Capital Management LLC now owns 2,929 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock valued at $609,000 after buying an additional 1,831 shares during the period. Rise Advisors LLC raised its position in Darden Restaurants by 32.2% in the first quarter. Rise Advisors LLC now owns 201 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock worth $42,000 after acquiring an additional 49 shares during the period. Nissay Asset Management Corp Japan ADV boosted its stake in Darden Restaurants by 0.8% in the first quarter. Nissay Asset Management Corp Japan ADV now owns 14,375 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock valued at $2,987,000 after acquiring an additional 113 shares during the last quarter. NewEdge Advisors LLC grew its position in shares of Darden Restaurants by 3.4% during the 1st quarter. NewEdge Advisors LLC now owns 57,674 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock valued at $11,982,000 after acquiring an additional 1,922 shares during the period. Finally, DoubleLine ETF Adviser LP purchased a new stake in shares of Darden Restaurants during the 1st quarter worth approximately $590,000. 93.64% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research firms recently commented on DRI. Wall Street Zen downgraded Darden Restaurants from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Friday, June 27th. Truist Financial reaffirmed a “buy” rating and set a $252.00 price target on shares of Darden Restaurants in a research report on Tuesday, September 2nd. Melius Research upgraded Darden Restaurants to a “hold” rating in a research note on Monday, July 14th. Stephens boosted their price objective on Darden Restaurants from $200.00 to $212.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Monday, June 23rd. Finally, TD Securities reaffirmed a “hold” rating and set a $215.00 price objective on shares of Darden Restaurants in a report on Friday, June 20th. Sixteen equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and eleven have given a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $225.19.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, SVP Matthew R. Broad sold 6,949 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, June 30th. The shares were sold at an average price of $218.00, for a total transaction of $1,514,882.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president owned 14,367 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $3,132,006. The trade was a 32.60% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, SVP Douglas J. Milanes sold 11,948 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, June 24th. The stock was sold at an average price of $222.08, for a total transaction of $2,653,411.84. Following the completion of the sale, the senior vice president owned 147 shares in the company, valued at $32,645.76. This represents a 98.78% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 45,727 shares of company stock valued at $10,022,232 in the last three months. Insiders own 0.49% of the company’s stock.

Darden Restaurants Price Performance

Darden Restaurants stock opened at $210.25 on Friday. The firm has a market capitalization of $24.51 billion, a P/E ratio of 23.68, a PEG ratio of 1.93 and a beta of 0.71. Darden Restaurants, Inc. has a one year low of $153.98 and a one year high of $228.27. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.92, a current ratio of 0.42 and a quick ratio of 0.28. The business has a fifty day moving average price of $208.36 and a 200-day moving average price of $205.32.

Darden Restaurants (NYSE:DRI) last released its quarterly earnings data on Friday, June 20th. The restaurant operator reported $2.98 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.97 by $0.01. Darden Restaurants had a return on equity of 51.81% and a net margin of 8.69%.The company had revenue of $3.27 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.25 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $2.65 EPS. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 10.6% compared to the same quarter last year. Darden Restaurants has set its FY 2026 guidance at 10.500-10.700 EPS. As a group, equities research analysts forecast that Darden Restaurants, Inc. will post 9.52 EPS for the current year.

Darden Restaurants Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, August 1st. Stockholders of record on Thursday, July 10th were issued a $1.50 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, July 10th. This is a positive change from Darden Restaurants’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.40. This represents a $6.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.9%. Darden Restaurants’s payout ratio is currently 67.57%.

Darden Restaurants announced that its board has initiated a stock buyback plan on Friday, June 20th that allows the company to buyback $1.00 billion in shares. This buyback authorization allows the restaurant operator to buy up to 3.8% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback plans are usually a sign that the company’s board believes its shares are 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.