Virtu Financial LLC Boosts Stake in Darden Restaurants, Inc. (NYSE:DRI)

Virtu Financial LLC lifted its holdings in Darden Restaurants, Inc. (NYSE:DRI) by 11.9% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 7,372 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock after purchasing an additional 786 shares during the quarter. Virtu Financial LLC’s holdings in Darden Restaurants were worth $1,376,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Other hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of the company. Kestra Investment Management LLC purchased a new stake in Darden Restaurants in the fourth quarter worth about $25,000. Compass Wealth Management LLC purchased a new stake in Darden Restaurants in the fourth quarter worth about $28,000. TCTC Holdings LLC purchased a new stake in Darden Restaurants in the fourth quarter worth about $28,000. MCF Advisors LLC increased its position in Darden Restaurants by 50.9% in the fourth quarter. MCF Advisors LLC now owns 175 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock worth $33,000 after buying an additional 59 shares in the last quarter. Finally, HHM Wealth Advisors LLC increased its position in Darden Restaurants by 103.2% in the fourth quarter. HHM Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 254 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock worth $47,000 after buying an additional 129 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 93.64% of the company’s stock.

Darden Restaurants Trading Up 0.5 %

DRI opened at $199.92 on Monday. The firm has a market cap of $23.42 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 22.90, a PEG ratio of 2.15 and a beta of 1.27. The company has a current ratio of 0.37, a quick ratio of 0.23 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.02. Darden Restaurants, Inc. has a 12 month low of $135.87 and a 12 month high of $203.47. The stock has a fifty day moving average price of $192.08 and a 200-day moving average price of $176.85.

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. The firm had revenue of $3.16 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.22 billion. Darden Restaurants had a return on equity of 50.12% and a net margin of 9.01%. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 6.2% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $2.60 EPS. As a group, equities research analysts anticipate 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. Investors of record on Thursday, April 10th will be paid a dividend of $1.40 per share. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, April 10th. This represents a $5.60 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.80%. Darden Restaurants’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 64.15%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of analysts have commented on the company. Truist Financial upped their price target on Darden Restaurants from $200.00 to $212.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, March 17th. The Goldman Sachs Group initiated coverage on Darden Restaurants in a research note on Thursday, December 5th. They issued a “neutral” rating and a $183.00 price objective for the company. Bank of America upped their price objective on Darden Restaurants from $230.00 to $238.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday. KeyCorp upped their price objective on Darden Restaurants from $200.00 to $220.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday. Finally, Barclays upped their price objective on Darden Restaurants from $230.00 to $235.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have given a hold rating and sixteen have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Darden Restaurants presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $201.36.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, insider Todd Burrowes sold 15,783 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction 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 transaction, the insider now directly owns 46,288 shares in the company, valued at $8,472,092.64. The trade was a 25.43 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Also, SVP Matthew R. Broad sold 12,759 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, January 21st. The stock was sold at an average price of $187.37, for a total value of $2,390,653.83. Following the transaction, the senior vice president now owns 14,328 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,684,637.36. This trade represents a 47.10 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 45,698 shares of company stock worth $8,536,729 in the last ninety days. 0.58% of the stock is owned by insiders.

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.