SEB Asset Management AB Invests $4.48 Million in Darden Restaurants, Inc. $DRI

SEB Asset Management AB acquired a new stake in shares of Darden Restaurants, Inc. (NYSE:DRI) in the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm acquired 22,872 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock, valued at approximately $4,484,000.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in DRI. Torren Management LLC bought a new position in Darden Restaurants in the 4th quarter worth about $26,000. Union Savings Bank purchased a new stake in shares of Darden Restaurants in the 4th quarter valued at about $28,000. Thurston Springer Miller Herd & Titak Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Darden Restaurants by 926.7% in the 4th quarter. Thurston Springer Miller Herd & Titak Inc. now owns 154 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock valued at $28,000 after acquiring an additional 139 shares in the last quarter. BOK Financial Private Wealth Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Darden Restaurants during the 4th quarter valued at about $29,000. Finally, DV Equities LLC bought a new stake in shares of Darden Restaurants during the 4th quarter valued at about $30,000. 93.64% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Darden Restaurants Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE DRI opened at $193.91 on Thursday. The stock’s 50-day moving average is $202.77 and its 200 day moving average is $202.93. The stock has a market cap of $22.21 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 18.68, a P/E/G ratio of 1.92 and a beta of 0.60. Darden Restaurants, Inc. has a 1-year low of $169.00 and a 1-year high of $220.65. The company has a current ratio of 0.31, a quick ratio of 0.21 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.74.

Darden Restaurants (NYSE:DRI) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, June 25th. The restaurant operator reported $3.66 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $3.63 by $0.03. Darden Restaurants had a return on equity of 57.44% and a net margin of 9.13%.The business had revenue of $3.72 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.73 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $2.98 earnings per share. Darden Restaurants’s revenue for the quarter was up 13.7% on a year-over-year basis. Darden Restaurants has set its FY 2027 guidance at 11.100-11.350 EPS. On average, sell-side analysts anticipate that Darden Restaurants, Inc. will post 11.28 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Darden Restaurants Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, August 3rd. Stockholders of record on Friday, July 10th will be paid a $1.62 dividend. This is a positive change from Darden Restaurants’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.50. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, July 10th. This represents a $6.48 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.3%. Darden Restaurants’s dividend payout ratio is currently 62.43%.

Insider Activity at Darden Restaurants

In related news, SVP Susan M. Connelly sold 9,930 shares of the stock in a transaction on Tuesday, July 7th. The shares were sold at an average price of $206.21, for a total transaction of $2,047,665.30. Following the transaction, the senior vice president owned 4,165 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $858,864.65. This trade represents a 70.45% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Corporate insiders own 0.49% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research firms recently weighed in on DRI. UBS Group upped their price objective on shares of Darden Restaurants from $230.00 to $240.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, June 26th. Argus lifted their target price on shares of Darden Restaurants from $240.00 to $245.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, June 30th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft boosted their price target on shares of Darden Restaurants from $230.00 to $236.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, June 26th. Evercore lowered shares of Darden Restaurants from an “outperform” rating to an “in-line” rating and set a $230.00 price target on the stock. in a report on Tuesday, June 23rd. Finally, Robert W. Baird raised their price objective on shares of Darden Restaurants from $210.00 to $220.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Friday, June 26th. Seventeen equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and ten have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $228.88.

Darden Restaurants Profile

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.