Raymond James Forecasts Strong Price Appreciation for Darden Restaurants (NYSE:DRI) Stock

Darden Restaurants (NYSE:DRI) had its price objective increased by equities research analysts at Raymond James from $200.00 to $210.00 in a note issued to investors on Tuesday,Benzinga reports. The firm presently has an “outperform” rating on the restaurant operator’s stock. Raymond James’ price objective indicates a potential upside of 8.24% from the company’s previous close.

Other analysts have also issued research reports about the stock. KeyCorp raised their price target on shares of Darden Restaurants from $194.00 to $200.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday, December 20th. Robert W. Baird lifted their target price on shares of Darden Restaurants from $180.00 to $194.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Friday, December 20th. Citigroup dropped their target price on shares of Darden Restaurants from $209.00 to $206.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, December 4th. Barclays lifted their target price on shares of Darden Restaurants from $206.00 to $230.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Tuesday, January 7th. Finally, Wedbush lifted their target price on shares of Darden Restaurants from $200.00 to $220.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Friday, December 20th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have given a hold rating and seventeen have given a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Darden Restaurants presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $192.52.

Darden Restaurants Stock Up 0.8 %

DRI stock opened at $194.01 on Tuesday. The firm has a market cap of $22.73 billion, a PE ratio of 22.22, a P/E/G ratio of 2.05 and a beta of 1.31. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.02, a quick ratio of 0.23 and a current ratio of 0.37. The firm’s fifty day moving average is $179.27 and its 200 day moving average is $164.63. Darden Restaurants has a one year low of $135.87 and a one year high of $194.85.

Darden Restaurants (NYSE:DRI) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, December 19th. The restaurant operator reported $2.03 EPS for the quarter, meeting the consensus estimate of $2.03. The company had revenue of $2.89 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.87 billion. Darden Restaurants had a net margin of 9.01% and a return on equity of 50.12%. The firm’s revenue was up 6.0% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the business earned $1.84 earnings per share. On average, research analysts forecast that Darden Restaurants will post 9.52 EPS for the current year.

Insider Transactions at Darden Restaurants

In related news, SVP Susan M. Connelly sold 9,264 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, January 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $184.68, for a total value of $1,710,875.52. Following the transaction, the senior vice president now owns 4,567 shares in the company, valued at approximately $843,433.56. This trade represents a 66.98 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, CFO Rajesh Vennam sold 7,228 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, December 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $181.71, for a total transaction of $1,313,399.88. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer now owns 10,262 shares in the company, valued at $1,864,708.02. The trade was a 41.33 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 45,034 shares of company stock worth $8,303,692 in the last three months. Company insiders own 0.58% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of Darden Restaurants

Several large investors have recently bought and sold shares of DRI. Public Sector Pension Investment Board grew its position in Darden Restaurants by 63.4% in the second quarter. Public Sector Pension Investment Board now owns 4,600 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock valued at $696,000 after acquiring an additional 1,784 shares in the last quarter. Marshall Wace LLP grew its position in Darden Restaurants by 2.8% in the second quarter. Marshall Wace LLP now owns 22,190 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock valued at $3,358,000 after acquiring an additional 609 shares in the last quarter. Creative Planning grew its position in Darden Restaurants by 6.4% in the second quarter. Creative Planning now owns 20,404 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock valued at $3,087,000 after acquiring an additional 1,228 shares in the last quarter. NewEdge Advisors LLC grew its position in Darden Restaurants by 15.5% in the second quarter. NewEdge Advisors LLC now owns 42,590 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock valued at $6,445,000 after acquiring an additional 5,706 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. grew its position in Darden Restaurants by 3.4% in the second quarter. Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. now owns 7,408 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock valued at $1,121,000 after acquiring an additional 242 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 93.64% of the company’s stock.

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.