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

Darden Restaurants (NYSE:DRI) had its price target boosted by Wedbush from $220.00 to $235.00 in a report released on Friday morning, MarketBeat reports. The brokerage currently has an outperform rating on the restaurant operator’s stock. Wedbush also issued estimates for Darden Restaurants’ Q1 2026 earnings at $2.07 EPS, Q4 2026 earnings at $3.60 EPS and FY2026 earnings at $10.93 EPS.

A number of other equities research analysts have also weighed in on DRI. Oppenheimer upped their target price on shares of Darden Restaurants from $218.00 to $230.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Friday. Bank of America upped their target price on shares of Darden Restaurants from $230.00 to $238.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Friday. UBS Group upped their target price on shares of Darden Restaurants from $195.00 to $210.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, December 20th. Stephens upped their target price on shares of Darden Restaurants from $175.00 to $178.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a report on Friday. Finally, Truist Financial upped their target price on shares of Darden Restaurants from $200.00 to $212.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, March 17th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have given a hold rating and sixteen have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Darden Restaurants currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $201.36.

Darden Restaurants Price Performance

DRI stock opened at $199.92 on Friday. The stock has a market capitalization of $23.42 billion, a PE ratio of 22.90, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.15 and a beta of 1.27. The company’s 50-day moving average is $192.08 and its 200-day moving average is $176.85. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.02, a current ratio of 0.37 and a quick ratio of 0.23. Darden Restaurants has a 1 year low of $135.87 and a 1 year high of $203.47.

Darden Restaurants (NYSE:DRI) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, March 20th. The restaurant operator reported $2.80 earnings per share for the quarter, hitting analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.80. Darden Restaurants had a net margin of 9.01% and a return on equity of 50.12%. The company had revenue of $3.16 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.22 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business posted $2.60 EPS. The firm’s revenue was up 6.2% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities research analysts expect that Darden Restaurants will post 9.52 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Darden Restaurants Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, May 1st. Stockholders of record on Thursday, April 10th will be given a dividend of $1.40 per share. This represents a $5.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.80%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, April 10th. Darden Restaurants’s dividend payout ratio is currently 64.15%.

Insider Activity

In related news, SVP Douglas J. Milanes sold 7,892 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, January 30th. The shares were sold at an average price of $195.95, for a total value of $1,546,437.40. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president now directly owns 3,914 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $766,948.30. This trade represents a 66.85 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, insider Todd Burrowes sold 15,783 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, January 14th. The stock was sold at an average price of $183.03, for a total transaction of $2,888,762.49. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now directly owns 46,288 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $8,472,092.64. This trade represents a 25.43 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 45,698 shares of company stock valued at $8,536,729 in the last three months. Company insiders own 0.58% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the business. Impact Investors Inc bought a new position in Darden Restaurants in the 4th quarter valued at $405,000. Comprehensive Financial Consultants Institutional Inc. boosted its holdings in Darden Restaurants by 10.8% in the 4th quarter. Comprehensive Financial Consultants Institutional Inc. now owns 14,912 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock valued at $2,784,000 after purchasing an additional 1,451 shares during the period. US Bancorp DE boosted its holdings in Darden Restaurants by 3.2% in the 4th quarter. US Bancorp DE now owns 146,460 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock valued at $27,343,000 after purchasing an additional 4,543 shares during the period. QV Investors Inc. boosted its holdings in Darden Restaurants by 4.3% in the 4th quarter. QV Investors Inc. now owns 87,702 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock valued at $16,373,000 after purchasing an additional 3,580 shares during the period. Finally, Fjarde AP Fonden Fourth Swedish National Pension Fund raised its position in shares of Darden Restaurants by 14.7% during the 4th quarter. Fjarde AP Fonden Fourth Swedish National Pension Fund now owns 32,853 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock valued at $6,133,000 after buying an additional 4,200 shares in the last quarter. 93.64% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

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.