Kiker Wealth Management LLC Invests $586,000 in Darden Restaurants, Inc. (NYSE:DRI)

Kiker Wealth Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of Darden Restaurants, Inc. (NYSE:DRI) in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund acquired 3,138 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock, valued at approximately $586,000.

Other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Kestra Investment Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of Darden Restaurants during the 4th quarter worth $25,000. Compass Wealth Management LLC acquired a new position in Darden Restaurants during the fourth quarter worth about $28,000. TCTC Holdings LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Darden Restaurants in the fourth quarter valued at about $28,000. MCF Advisors LLC increased its stake in shares of Darden Restaurants by 50.9% during the 4th quarter. MCF Advisors LLC now owns 175 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock worth $33,000 after purchasing an additional 59 shares in the last quarter. Finally, HHM Wealth Advisors LLC increased its stake in shares of Darden Restaurants by 103.2% during the 4th quarter. HHM Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 254 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock worth $47,000 after purchasing an additional 129 shares in the last quarter. 93.64% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Darden Restaurants news, SVP Douglas J. Milanes sold 7,892 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, January 30th. The stock was sold at an average price of $195.95, for a total transaction of $1,546,437.40. Following the sale, the senior vice president now owns 3,914 shares in the company, valued at $766,948.30. This represents a 66.85 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, CFO Rajesh Vennam sold 7,228 shares of Darden Restaurants stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, December 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $181.71, for a total value of $1,313,399.88. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer now owns 10,262 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,864,708.02. The trade was a 41.33 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last 90 days, insiders have sold 52,926 shares of company stock worth $9,850,129. 0.58% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Darden Restaurants Trading Up 5.6 %

NYSE:DRI opened at $198.66 on Friday. Darden Restaurants, Inc. has a 12 month low of $135.87 and a 12 month high of $203.47. The business’s 50-day moving average is $191.67 and its two-hundred day moving average is $176.31. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.02, a current ratio of 0.37 and a quick ratio of 0.23. The firm has a market capitalization of $23.27 billion, a PE ratio of 22.76, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.15 and a beta of 1.27.

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

Darden Restaurants Dividend Announcement

The firm 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 2.82%. Darden Restaurants’s payout ratio is 64.15%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities research analysts have commented on the company. Bank of America increased their target price on Darden Restaurants from $195.00 to $211.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, December 20th. Citigroup dropped their price objective on Darden Restaurants from $209.00 to $206.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, December 4th. Stephens reaffirmed an “equal weight” rating and set a $175.00 price target on shares of Darden Restaurants in a research note on Thursday. Oppenheimer lifted their price target on shares of Darden Restaurants from $200.00 to $218.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Tuesday, January 7th. Finally, Barclays upped their price objective on shares of Darden Restaurants from $206.00 to $230.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Tuesday, January 7th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have assigned a hold rating and sixteen have given a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $193.33.

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.