Marks Group Wealth Management Inc Cuts Stake in Darden Restaurants, Inc. (NYSE:DRI)

Marks Group Wealth Management Inc lessened its holdings in shares of Darden Restaurants, Inc. (NYSE:DRI) by 0.8% in the 4th quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The firm owned 46,834 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock after selling 357 shares during the quarter. Marks Group Wealth Management Inc’s holdings in Darden Restaurants were worth $7,695,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the business. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Darden Restaurants by 2.1% during the third quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 2,576,948 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock worth $369,070,000 after purchasing an additional 52,864 shares during the last quarter. Victory Capital Management Inc. boosted its stake in shares of Darden Restaurants by 9.6% during the 3rd quarter. Victory Capital Management Inc. now owns 2,290,224 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock worth $328,006,000 after acquiring an additional 200,342 shares in the last quarter. Raymond James & Associates grew its position in shares of Darden Restaurants by 7.3% during the 4th quarter. Raymond James & Associates now owns 1,968,301 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock valued at $323,392,000 after acquiring an additional 134,098 shares during the period. Morgan Stanley increased its stake in shares of Darden Restaurants by 13.8% in the 3rd quarter. Morgan Stanley now owns 1,669,789 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock valued at $239,148,000 after purchasing an additional 202,139 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Wellington Management Group LLP raised its holdings in Darden Restaurants by 0.6% in the 3rd quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 1,639,513 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock worth $234,811,000 after purchasing an additional 9,232 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 93.64% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

DRI has been the subject of a number of recent analyst reports. Oppenheimer cut their price objective on Darden Restaurants from $186.00 to $182.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, March 22nd. Barclays lifted their target price on shares of Darden Restaurants from $180.00 to $187.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, January 3rd. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their target price on Darden Restaurants from $170.00 to $180.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Tuesday, March 19th. StockNews.com lowered Darden Restaurants from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Thursday, January 4th. Finally, Wedbush reduced their target price on shares of Darden Restaurants from $187.00 to $181.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, March 22nd. Five research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and fifteen have given a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, Darden Restaurants currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $178.85.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Darden Restaurants news, SVP Matthew R. Broad sold 6,831 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, January 31st. The stock was sold at an average price of $163.26, for a total value of $1,115,229.06. Following the sale, the senior vice president now owns 19,141 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $3,124,959.66. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. In related news, insider Melvin John Martin sold 7,673 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, March 27th. The stock was sold at an average price of $165.52, for a total transaction of $1,270,034.96. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now directly owns 17,208 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,848,268.16. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, SVP Matthew R. Broad sold 6,831 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, January 31st. The stock was sold at an average price of $163.26, for a total transaction of $1,115,229.06. Following the sale, the senior vice president now owns 19,141 shares in the company, valued at $3,124,959.66. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last quarter, insiders sold 15,723 shares of company stock valued at $2,578,122. Company insiders own 0.85% of the company’s stock.

Darden Restaurants Trading Up 1.3 %

NYSE:DRI traded up $2.05 on Monday, reaching $154.55. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 1,234,516 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,150,490. The firm has a market cap of $18.45 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 18.12, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.68 and a beta of 1.25. The company has a quick ratio of 0.25, a current ratio of 0.39 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.63. Darden Restaurants, Inc. has a 12-month low of $133.36 and a 12-month high of $176.84. The stock has a 50 day moving average price of $165.01 and a 200 day moving average price of $159.00.

Darden Restaurants (NYSE:DRI) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, March 21st. The restaurant operator reported $2.62 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $2.63 by ($0.01). Darden Restaurants had a net margin of 9.24% and a return on equity of 49.94%. The company had revenue of $2.97 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $3.02 billion. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $2.34 earnings per share. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 6.8% on a year-over-year basis. On average, equities analysts anticipate that Darden Restaurants, Inc. will post 8.85 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Darden Restaurants Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, May 1st. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, April 10th will be issued a $1.31 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, April 9th. This represents a $5.24 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.39%. Darden Restaurants’s dividend payout ratio is currently 61.43%.

Darden Restaurants announced that its Board of Directors has authorized a stock repurchase program on Thursday, March 21st that allows the company to buyback $1.00 billion in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization allows the restaurant operator to purchase up to 5% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback programs are generally an indication that the company’s leadership 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.