Oppenheimer Asset Management Inc. Has $3 Million Position in Darden Restaurants, Inc. $DRI

Oppenheimer Asset Management Inc. trimmed its position in shares of Darden Restaurants, Inc. (NYSE:DRI) by 1.8% during the second quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 13,758 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock after selling 255 shares during the quarter. Oppenheimer Asset Management Inc.’s holdings in Darden Restaurants were worth $2,999,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Choreo LLC boosted its position in Darden Restaurants by 46.0% during the 1st quarter. Choreo LLC now owns 16,248 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock worth $3,376,000 after buying an additional 5,119 shares during the period. Principal Financial Group Inc. raised its stake in shares of Darden Restaurants by 5.1% during the first quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 162,340 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock valued at $33,728,000 after acquiring an additional 7,902 shares during the last quarter. Golden State Wealth Management LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Darden Restaurants by 12.4% during the first quarter. Golden State Wealth Management LLC now owns 924 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock worth $192,000 after purchasing an additional 102 shares during the period. OneDigital Investment Advisors LLC bought a new stake in shares of Darden Restaurants in the first quarter worth $266,000. Finally, Foundry Partners LLC grew its stake in shares of Darden Restaurants by 12.2% in the first quarter. Foundry Partners LLC now owns 93,293 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock worth $19,383,000 after purchasing an additional 10,165 shares during the last quarter. 93.64% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Insider Buying and Selling at Darden Restaurants

In other news, SVP Matthew R. Broad sold 5,661 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Monday, October 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $193.40, for a total transaction of $1,094,837.40. Following the transaction, the senior vice president owned 13,916 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,691,354.40. This represents a 28.92% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Corporate insiders own 0.49% of the company’s stock.

Darden Restaurants Trading Down 1.2%

NYSE DRI opened at $181.50 on Wednesday. The stock has a market capitalization of $21.11 billion, a P/E ratio of 19.45, a P/E/G ratio of 1.68 and a beta of 0.77. The business has a 50 day simple moving average of $196.78 and a 200 day simple moving average of $204.63. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.96, a current ratio of 0.40 and a quick ratio of 0.27. Darden Restaurants, Inc. has a one year low of $157.89 and a one year high of $228.27.

Darden Restaurants (NYSE:DRI) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, September 18th. The restaurant operator reported $1.97 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $2.01 by ($0.04). The business 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%. Darden Restaurants’s quarterly revenue was up 10.4% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the firm posted $1.75 earnings per share. Darden Restaurants has set its FY 2026 guidance at 10.500-10.700 EPS. Research analysts expect that Darden Restaurants, Inc. will post 9.52 earnings per share for the current year.

Darden Restaurants Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, November 3rd. Shareholders of record on Friday, October 10th will be paid a $1.50 dividend. This represents a $6.00 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.3%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, October 10th. Darden Restaurants’s payout ratio is 64.31%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research analysts recently issued reports on DRI shares. Truist Financial lowered their target price on Darden Restaurants from $252.00 to $240.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, September 19th. Mizuho began coverage on Darden Restaurants in a research note on Tuesday. They issued a “neutral” rating and a $190.00 price target for the company. BTIG Research cut their price objective on Darden Restaurants from $235.00 to $225.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, September 19th. Evercore ISI decreased their target price on shares of Darden Restaurants from $245.00 to $240.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, September 19th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company lowered their price target on shares of Darden Restaurants from $225.00 to $200.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a report on Friday, September 19th. Twenty equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and ten have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Darden Restaurants presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $225.82.

About Darden Restaurants

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.