Forvis Mazars Wealth Advisors LLC Acquires 1,028 Shares of Darden Restaurants, Inc. (NYSE:DRI)

Forvis Mazars Wealth Advisors LLC grew its holdings in Darden Restaurants, Inc. (NYSE:DRI) by 5.9% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 18,540 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock after purchasing an additional 1,028 shares during the period. Forvis Mazars Wealth Advisors LLC’s holdings in Darden Restaurants were worth $3,461,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of the business. Kestra Investment Management LLC bought a new position in Darden Restaurants in the 4th quarter worth about $25,000. Compass Wealth Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Darden Restaurants in the fourth quarter worth about $28,000. MCF Advisors LLC boosted its position in shares of Darden Restaurants by 50.9% in the fourth quarter. MCF Advisors LLC now owns 175 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock valued at $33,000 after acquiring an additional 59 shares during the period. HHM Wealth Advisors LLC boosted its position in shares of Darden Restaurants by 103.2% in the fourth quarter. HHM Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 254 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock valued at $47,000 after acquiring an additional 129 shares during the period. Finally, Webster Bank N. A. purchased a new position in Darden Restaurants during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $51,000. 93.64% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Darden Restaurants Stock Down 2.0 %

Shares of NYSE:DRI opened at $191.12 on Monday. Darden Restaurants, Inc. has a 12-month low of $135.87 and a 12-month high of $201.94. The company has a current ratio of 0.37, a quick ratio of 0.23 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.02. The stock’s 50-day moving average price is $187.90 and its 200-day moving average price is $171.04. The stock has a market capitalization of $22.39 billion, a P/E ratio of 21.89, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.15 and a beta of 1.31.

Darden Restaurants (NYSE:DRI) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, December 19th. The restaurant operator reported $2.03 EPS for the quarter, hitting analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.03. Darden Restaurants had a return on equity of 50.12% and a net margin of 9.01%. The business had revenue of $2.89 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $2.87 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned $1.84 EPS. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 6.0% on a year-over-year basis. On average, equities analysts anticipate that Darden Restaurants, Inc. will post 9.52 earnings per share for the current year.

Darden Restaurants Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, February 3rd. Investors of record on Friday, January 10th were issued a dividend of $1.40 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, January 10th. This represents a $5.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.93%. Darden Restaurants’s dividend payout ratio is currently 64.15%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several analysts have issued reports on the stock. Stephens increased their target price on shares of Darden Restaurants from $164.00 to $175.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Friday, December 20th. Truist Financial increased their price objective on Darden Restaurants from $195.00 to $200.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, December 20th. Robert W. Baird boosted their target price on Darden Restaurants from $180.00 to $194.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Friday, December 20th. Sanford C. Bernstein upgraded Darden Restaurants from a “market perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and upped their target price for the stock from $180.00 to $215.00 in a research note on Wednesday, January 22nd. Finally, KeyCorp lifted their price target on Darden Restaurants from $194.00 to $200.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday, December 20th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have given a hold rating and seventeen have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, Darden Restaurants currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $192.52.

Insider Buying and Selling at Darden Restaurants

In other news, SVP Douglas J. Milanes sold 7,892 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, January 30th. The shares were sold at an average price of $195.95, for a total transaction of $1,546,437.40. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president now directly owns 3,914 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $766,948.30. This represents a 66.85 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, CFO Rajesh Vennam sold 7,228 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, December 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $181.71, for a total value of $1,313,399.88. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer now directly owns 10,262 shares in the company, valued at $1,864,708.02. The trade was a 41.33 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 52,926 shares of company stock valued at $9,850,129 in the last quarter. Company insiders own 0.58% of the company’s stock.

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.