Blueshift Asset Management LLC Takes $777,000 Position in Darden Restaurants, Inc. (NYSE:DRI)

Blueshift Asset Management LLC acquired a new position in Darden Restaurants, Inc. (NYSE:DRI) in the third quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The fund acquired 4,732 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock, valued at approximately $777,000.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Mizuho Securities USA LLC boosted its holdings in Darden Restaurants by 96,162.9% in the third quarter. Mizuho Securities USA LLC now owns 8,861,000 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock worth $1,454,356,000 after acquiring an additional 8,851,795 shares in the last quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA raised its position in shares of Darden Restaurants by 111.0% in the 3rd quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA now owns 1,469,083 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock valued at $241,121,000 after purchasing an additional 772,907 shares during the last quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC boosted its stake in Darden Restaurants by 16,996.9% in the 3rd quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC now owns 377,500 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock worth $61,959,000 after purchasing an additional 375,292 shares in the last quarter. Toronto Dominion Bank grew its position in Darden Restaurants by 139.9% during the 2nd quarter. Toronto Dominion Bank now owns 352,344 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock worth $53,317,000 after purchasing an additional 205,450 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Hsbc Holdings PLC increased its stake in Darden Restaurants by 81.2% during the 2nd quarter. Hsbc Holdings PLC now owns 457,114 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock valued at $69,125,000 after purchasing an additional 204,832 shares in the last quarter. 93.64% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Darden Restaurants Stock Performance

Shares of DRI stock opened at $175.04 on Thursday. The company has a current ratio of 0.35, a quick ratio of 0.22 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.65. Darden Restaurants, Inc. has a 12-month low of $135.87 and a 12-month high of $177.58. The business’s 50 day moving average is $164.35 and its two-hundred day moving average is $154.61. The company has a market capitalization of $20.57 billion, a P/E ratio of 20.19, a P/E/G ratio of 2.02 and a beta of 1.31.

Darden Restaurants (NYSE:DRI) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, September 19th. The restaurant operator reported $1.75 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.83 by ($0.08). The business had revenue of $2.76 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $2.80 billion. Darden Restaurants had a net margin of 9.11% and a return on equity of 49.46%. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 1.0% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the business earned $1.78 EPS. Analysts expect that Darden Restaurants, Inc. will post 9.47 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Darden Restaurants Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, November 1st. Investors of record on Thursday, October 10th were given a dividend of $1.40 per share. This represents a $5.60 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.20%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, October 10th. This is an increase from Darden Restaurants’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.29. Darden Restaurants’s dividend payout ratio is 64.59%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

DRI has been the subject of several research reports. BMO Capital Markets lifted their price objective on shares of Darden Restaurants from $165.00 to $175.00 and gave the stock a “market perform” rating in a research note on Friday, September 20th. Truist Financial lifted their price target on Darden Restaurants from $185.00 to $195.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, September 20th. Citigroup dropped their price target on Darden Restaurants from $192.00 to $191.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, September 10th. Morgan Stanley raised their price objective on Darden Restaurants from $175.00 to $188.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday, September 20th. Finally, Bank of America upped their target price on Darden Restaurants from $184.00 to $195.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, September 20th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have issued a hold rating and sixteen have assigned a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, Darden Restaurants has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $180.13.

Insider Activity at Darden Restaurants

In related news, SVP Douglas J. Milanes sold 5,705 shares of the stock in a transaction on Monday, September 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $172.04, for a total value of $981,488.20. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president now directly owns 3,834 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $659,601.36. This represents a 59.81 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, insider Laura B. Williamson sold 1,666 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Monday, September 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $172.00, for a total value of $286,552.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now owns 5,334 shares in the company, valued at $917,448. The trade was a 23.80 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last three months, insiders have sold 59,265 shares of company stock valued at $10,116,030. 0.58% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

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.