Darden Restaurants, Inc. (DRI) To Go Ex-Dividend on January 9th

Darden Restaurants, Inc. (NYSE:DRI) declared a quarterly dividend on Thursday, December 18th. Investors of record on Friday, January 9th will be given a dividend of 1.50 per share by the restaurant operator on Monday, February 2nd. This represents a c) annualized dividend and a yield of 3.2%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, January 9th.

Darden Restaurants has increased its dividend payment by an average of 0.2%annually over the last three years and has increased its dividend annually for the last 4 consecutive years. Darden Restaurants has a payout ratio of 52.1% indicating that its dividend is sufficiently covered by earnings. Research analysts expect Darden Restaurants to earn $10.64 per share next year, which means the company should continue to be able to cover its $6.00 annual dividend with an expected future payout ratio of 56.4%.

Darden Restaurants Trading Down 1.5%

Shares of DRI stock opened at $189.91 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.03, a quick ratio of 0.27 and a current ratio of 0.39. The company has a market capitalization of $22.09 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 19.91, a PEG ratio of 1.87 and a beta of 0.66. Darden Restaurants has a 52-week low of $169.00 and a 52-week high of $228.27. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $180.27 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $197.95.

Darden Restaurants (NYSE:DRI) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, December 18th. The restaurant operator reported $2.08 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $2.09 by ($0.01). Darden Restaurants had a net margin of 8.92% and a return on equity of 52.44%. The company had revenue of $3.10 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $3.07 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $2.03 EPS. Darden Restaurants’s quarterly revenue was up 7.3% compared to the same quarter last year. Darden Restaurants has set its FY 2026 guidance at 10.500-10.700 EPS. Research analysts anticipate that Darden Restaurants will post 9.52 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Transactions at Darden Restaurants

In related news, SVP Matthew R. Broad sold 5,661 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Monday, October 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $193.40, for a total transaction of $1,094,837.40. Following the sale, the senior vice president owned 13,916 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,691,354.40. This represents a 28.92% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Company insiders own 0.49% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Darden Restaurants

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the company. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased its holdings in Darden Restaurants by 78.4% during the 3rd quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 2,666,919 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock worth $507,675,000 after acquiring an additional 1,171,890 shares during the period. Wellington Management Group LLP grew its position in shares of Darden Restaurants by 32.8% during the 3rd quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 4,463,786 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock valued at $849,726,000 after purchasing an additional 1,102,211 shares in the last quarter. Marshall Wace LLP increased its holdings in shares of Darden Restaurants by 820.4% in the second quarter. Marshall Wace LLP now owns 706,416 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock worth $153,977,000 after purchasing an additional 629,669 shares during the period. Invesco Ltd. raised its position in shares of Darden Restaurants by 45.2% in the second quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 1,917,398 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock worth $417,935,000 after buying an additional 596,863 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership boosted its stake in Darden Restaurants by 192.6% during the second quarter. Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership now owns 880,765 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock valued at $191,980,000 after buying an additional 579,759 shares during the period. 93.64% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

About Darden Restaurants

Darden Restaurants, Inc is a multi-brand, full-service restaurant company headquartered in Orlando, Florida. The company owns and operates a portfolio of casual and fine-dining concepts that together serve millions of guests through company-owned and franchised locations. Its well-known brands include Olive Garden and LongHorn Steakhouse, alongside other dining concepts that span Italian, American, steakhouse and upscale casual formats.

Darden’s restaurants provide a range of guest-facing services including dine-in, takeout, delivery and catering, and feature menus tailored to each brand’s positioning—Italian-American fare at Olive Garden, steaks and grilled items at LongHorn, and more premium steakhouse and chef-driven offerings at its upscale concepts.