Darden Restaurants (NYSE:DRI) Price Target Raised to $240.00

by · The Cerbat Gem

Darden Restaurants (NYSE:DRI – Free Report) had its price objective increased by Raymond James Financial from $230.00 to $240.00 in a research report report published on Monday morning,Benzinga reports. The firm currently has an outperform rating on the restaurant operator’s stock.

Several other research analysts also recently weighed in on the stock. Citigroup upped their target price on shares of Darden Restaurants from $245.00 to $253.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday. Morgan Stanley upped their target price on shares of Darden Restaurants from $215.00 to $235.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, June 18th. Guggenheim upped their target price on shares of Darden Restaurants from $205.00 to $220.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, March 24th. Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of Darden Restaurants from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Saturday, May 24th. Finally, Wedbush increased their price objective on shares of Darden Restaurants from $220.00 to $235.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Friday, March 21st. Nine analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seventeen have given a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $224.60.

Get Our Latest Analysis on DRI

Darden Restaurants Price Performance

Shares of DRI stock opened at $217.45 on Monday. The company has a market capitalization of $25.45 billion, a PE ratio of 24.49, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.13 and a beta of 0.75. The firm has a fifty day simple moving average of $209.59 and a 200-day simple moving average of $196.98. The company has a current ratio of 0.42, a quick ratio of 0.28 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.92. Darden Restaurants has a twelve month low of $135.87 and a twelve month high of $228.27.

Darden Restaurants (NYSE:DRI – Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Friday, June 20th. The restaurant operator reported $2.98 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.97 by $0.01. The business had revenue of $3.27 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $3.25 billion. Darden Restaurants had a net margin of 8.69% and a return on equity of 51.81%. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 10.6% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $2.65 earnings per share. Equities research analysts anticipate that Darden Restaurants will post 9.52 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Darden Restaurants declared that its board has initiated a share buyback program on Friday, June 20th that allows the company to repurchase $1.00 billion in outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization allows the restaurant operator to repurchase up to 3.8% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase programs are often an indication that the company’s board believes its stock is undervalued.

Darden Restaurants Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, August 1st. Stockholders of record on Thursday, July 10th will be given a $1.50 dividend. This is an increase 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 2.76%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, July 10th. Darden Restaurants’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 63.06%.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Large investors have recently modified their holdings of the business. Grove Bank & Trust lifted its position in shares of Darden Restaurants by 171.4% in the 1st quarter. Grove Bank & Trust now owns 133 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock worth $28,000 after buying an additional 84 shares during the last quarter. ORG Partners LLC increased its holdings in shares of Darden Restaurants by 108.8% in the 1st quarter. ORG Partners LLC now owns 142 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock worth $30,000 after acquiring an additional 74 shares during the period. Centennial Bank AR acquired a new stake in shares of Darden Restaurants in the 1st quarter worth about $31,000. TCTC Holdings LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Darden Restaurants in the 4th quarter worth about $28,000. Finally, Alpine Bank Wealth Management acquired a new stake in shares of Darden Restaurants in the 1st quarter worth about $34,000. 93.64% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

About Darden Restaurants

(Get Free Report)

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.

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