SG Americas Securities LLC Buys 30,095 Shares of Darden Restaurants, Inc. $DRI

SG Americas Securities LLC boosted its stake in Darden Restaurants, Inc. (NYSE:DRI) by 43.6% in the first quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 99,072 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock after purchasing an additional 30,095 shares during the quarter. SG Americas Securities LLC’s holdings in Darden Restaurants were worth $19,422,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of DRI. Torren Management LLC bought a new position in shares of Darden Restaurants during the 4th quarter worth about $26,000. Thurston Springer Miller Herd & Titak Inc. grew its stake in 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 acquiring an additional 139 shares during the period. Union Savings Bank bought a new stake in shares of Darden Restaurants during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $28,000. BOK Financial Private Wealth Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Darden Restaurants during the fourth quarter worth approximately $29,000. Finally, DV Equities LLC acquired a new position in shares of Darden Restaurants during the fourth quarter worth approximately $30,000. 93.64% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research firms recently issued reports on DRI. Oppenheimer reissued an “outperform” rating and issued a $235.00 price target on shares of Darden Restaurants in a research report on Thursday, June 18th. BTIG Research restated a “buy” rating and set a $225.00 price objective on shares of Darden Restaurants in a report on Friday, March 20th. Guggenheim raised their price objective on shares of Darden Restaurants from $230.00 to $235.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their price objective on shares of Darden Restaurants from $200.00 to $210.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Friday, March 20th. Finally, UBS Group reissued a “buy” rating and set a $230.00 target price on shares of Darden Restaurants in a research report on Tuesday, March 10th. Seventeen equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and nine have issued a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $227.46.

Darden Restaurants Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:DRI opened at $212.69 on Friday. The company has a current ratio of 0.39, a quick ratio of 0.25 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.02. The stock has a market cap of $24.36 billion, a PE ratio of 22.51, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.91 and a beta of 0.60. The stock’s fifty day simple moving average is $201.60 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $200.89. Darden Restaurants, Inc. has a 1-year low of $169.00 and a 1-year high of $222.56.

Darden Restaurants (NYSE:DRI) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, June 25th. The restaurant operator reported $3.66 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $3.63 by $0.03. The firm had revenue of $3.72 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.73 billion. Darden Restaurants had a net margin of 8.66% and a return on equity of 53.54%. The business’s revenue was up 13.7% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business posted $2.98 EPS. Darden Restaurants has set its FY 2027 guidance at 11.100-11.350 EPS. As a group, analysts forecast that Darden Restaurants, Inc. will post 10.62 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Darden Restaurants Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, August 3rd. Shareholders of record on Friday, July 10th will be paid a $1.62 dividend. This is a boost from Darden Restaurants’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.50. The ex-dividend date is Friday, July 10th. This represents a $6.48 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.0%. Darden Restaurants’s dividend payout ratio is currently 63.49%.

More Darden Restaurants News

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

• Positive Sentiment: Darden posted adjusted EPS of $3.66, topping estimates, while quarterly revenue rose 13.7% year over year, showing the business is still growing. Article Title
• Positive Sentiment: The company increased its quarterly dividend and authorized a new $1.5 billion share repurchase program, both of which support shareholder returns. Article Title
• Positive Sentiment: Operationally, same-restaurant sales beat expectations overall, with LongHorn Steakhouse helping drive the quarter and margins remaining strong. Article Title
• Neutral Sentiment: Darden said it modernized its bylaws to enhance shareholder participation, a governance update that is unlikely to materially move near-term earnings. Article Title
• Negative Sentiment: Revenue missed estimates and Olive Garden’s growth looked softer than expected, raising concern that traffic and comparable sales momentum may be slowing. Article Title
• Negative Sentiment: Fiscal 2027 EPS guidance of $11.10 to $11.35 came in below consensus, suggesting margin or cost pressure could limit upside next year. Article Title

Insider Transactions at Darden Restaurants

In other Darden Restaurants news, SVP Douglas J. Milanes sold 3,620 shares of Darden Restaurants stock in a transaction dated Friday, April 17th. The shares were sold at an average price of $202.16, for a total value of $731,819.20. Following the sale, the senior vice president owned 274 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $55,391.84. The trade was a 92.96% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, SVP Lindsay L. Koren sold 300 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, April 7th. The shares were sold at an average price of $194.32, for a total value of $58,296.00. Following the transaction, the senior vice president directly owned 1,617 shares in the company, valued at $314,215.44. This represents a 15.65% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Company insiders own 0.49% of the company’s stock.

Darden Restaurants Profile

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.