Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Holdings Inc. Trims Holdings in Darden Restaurants, Inc. (NYSE:DRI)

Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Holdings Inc. decreased its stake in shares of Darden Restaurants, Inc. (NYSE:DRI) by 5.9% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 292,469 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock after selling 18,329 shares during the quarter. Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Holdings Inc. owned about 0.24% of Darden Restaurants worth $48,053,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in DRI. Victory Capital Management Inc. lifted its position in Darden Restaurants by 223.4% during the fourth quarter. Victory Capital Management Inc. now owns 1,549,545 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock worth $214,349,000 after buying an additional 1,070,472 shares in the last quarter. Morgan Stanley lifted its position in Darden Restaurants by 51.1% during the fourth quarter. Morgan Stanley now owns 1,573,384 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock worth $217,646,000 after buying an additional 532,340 shares in the last quarter. BlackRock Inc. lifted its position in Darden Restaurants by 5.4% during the first quarter. BlackRock Inc. now owns 8,899,291 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock worth $1,380,814,000 after buying an additional 455,588 shares in the last quarter. Ameriprise Financial Inc. lifted its position in Darden Restaurants by 55.9% during the third quarter. Ameriprise Financial Inc. now owns 1,168,604 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock worth $167,359,000 after buying an additional 418,860 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Wellington Management Group LLP lifted its position in Darden Restaurants by 33.5% during the first quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 1,572,849 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock worth $209,110,000 after buying an additional 394,786 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 93.64% of the company’s stock.

Insider Transactions at Darden Restaurants

In other news, SVP Matthew R. Broad sold 6,831 shares of the company’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 completion of the transaction, the senior vice president now directly owns 19,141 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $3,124,959.66. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. In other news, SVP Matthew R. Broad sold 6,831 shares of the company’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 completion of the transaction, the senior vice president now directly owns 19,141 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $3,124,959.66. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, insider Melvin John Martin sold 7,673 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, March 27th. The shares were sold at an average price of $165.52, for a total value of $1,270,034.96. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now directly owns 17,208 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,848,268.16. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last ninety days, insiders sold 15,723 shares of company stock valued at $2,578,122. 0.85% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Darden Restaurants Trading Up 0.1 %

DRI opened at $152.49 on Friday. Darden Restaurants, Inc. has a 12 month low of $133.36 and a 12 month high of $176.84. The stock has a market capitalization of $18.20 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 17.88, a PEG ratio of 1.68 and a beta of 1.25. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.63, a current ratio of 0.39 and a quick ratio of 0.25. The business has a fifty day moving average price of $165.23 and a 200 day moving average price of $158.65.

Darden Restaurants (NYSE:DRI) last released 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). The business had revenue of $2.97 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.02 billion. Darden Restaurants had a return on equity of 49.94% and a net margin of 9.24%. The company’s revenue was up 6.8% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $2.34 earnings per share. Sell-side analysts expect that Darden Restaurants, Inc. will post 8.85 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Darden Restaurants announced that its board has authorized a stock buyback plan on Thursday, March 21st that permits the company to repurchase $1.00 billion in shares. This repurchase authorization permits the restaurant operator to repurchase up to 5% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares repurchase plans are often a sign that the company’s board believes its shares are undervalued.

Darden Restaurants Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, May 1st. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, April 10th will be given a dividend of $1.31 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, April 9th. This represents a $5.24 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.44%. Darden Restaurants’s dividend payout ratio is currently 61.43%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

DRI has been the topic of a number of research analyst reports. Stephens initiated coverage on Darden Restaurants in a research report on Friday, April 12th. They issued an “equal weight” rating and a $170.00 target price on the stock. Truist Financial restated a “buy” rating and issued a $190.00 target price on shares of Darden Restaurants in a research report on Friday, March 22nd. Barclays lifted their target price on Darden Restaurants from $180.00 to $187.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, January 3rd. Morgan Stanley reduced their target price on Darden Restaurants from $184.00 to $180.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, March 22nd. Finally, TD Cowen restated a “buy” rating and issued a $190.00 target price on shares of Darden Restaurants in a research report on Wednesday, April 10th. Five research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and fifteen have given a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $178.85.

Darden Restaurants 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.