Darden Restaurants, Inc. (NYSE:DRI) Shares Sold by Amalgamated Bank

Amalgamated Bank decreased its holdings in Darden Restaurants, Inc. (NYSE:DRI) by 2.6% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The firm owned 23,569 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock after selling 623 shares during the period. Amalgamated Bank’s holdings in Darden Restaurants were worth $4,400,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other large investors also recently made changes to their positions in the business. Pinnacle Associates Ltd. purchased a new position in Darden Restaurants in the 3rd quarter valued at about $260,000. HM Payson & Co. grew its position in shares of Darden Restaurants by 4.6% during the third quarter. HM Payson & Co. now owns 10,703 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock worth $1,757,000 after buying an additional 475 shares in the last quarter. US Bancorp DE raised its holdings in Darden Restaurants by 6.3% in the third quarter. US Bancorp DE now owns 141,917 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock valued at $23,293,000 after acquiring an additional 8,423 shares in the last quarter. Rosenberg Matthew Hamilton boosted its stake in Darden Restaurants by 11.4% during the 3rd quarter. Rosenberg Matthew Hamilton now owns 676 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock valued at $111,000 after acquiring an additional 69 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Cigna Investments Inc. New acquired a new position in Darden Restaurants during the 3rd quarter worth $200,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 93.64% of the company’s stock.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, SVP Susan M. Connelly sold 9,264 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, January 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $184.68, for a total transaction of $1,710,875.52. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president now directly owns 4,567 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $843,433.56. This trade represents a 66.98 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, SVP Douglas J. Milanes sold 7,892 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated 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 transaction, the senior vice president now owns 3,914 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $766,948.30. This represents a 66.85 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 52,926 shares of company stock valued at $9,850,129 in the last quarter. Insiders own 0.58% of the company’s stock.

Darden Restaurants Stock Performance

DRI stock opened at $200.72 on Friday. The firm has a 50 day moving average of $190.27 and a two-hundred day moving average of $172.50. Darden Restaurants, Inc. has a 12 month low of $135.87 and a 12 month high of $201.94. The company has a market capitalization of $23.51 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 22.99, a P/E/G ratio of 2.15 and a beta of 1.31. The company has a quick ratio of 0.23, a current ratio of 0.37 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.02.

Darden Restaurants (NYSE:DRI) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, December 19th. The restaurant operator reported $2.03 earnings per share for the quarter, hitting analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.03. The company had revenue of $2.89 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $2.87 billion. Darden Restaurants had a return on equity of 50.12% and a net margin of 9.01%. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 6.0% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm earned $1.84 earnings per share. As a group, equities analysts anticipate that Darden Restaurants, Inc. will post 9.52 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Darden Restaurants Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, February 3rd. Investors of record on Friday, January 10th were issued a dividend of $1.40 per share. This represents a $5.60 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.79%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, January 10th. Darden Restaurants’s dividend payout ratio is currently 64.15%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

DRI has been the topic of several research analyst reports. Barclays increased their price target on shares of Darden Restaurants from $206.00 to $230.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Tuesday, January 7th. BMO Capital Markets raised their price objective on Darden Restaurants from $165.00 to $175.00 and gave the stock a “market perform” rating in a research note on Friday, December 20th. Morgan Stanley raised their price target on shares of Darden Restaurants from $193.00 to $209.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Monday, December 23rd. Wedbush boosted their price objective on shares of Darden Restaurants from $200.00 to $220.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Friday, December 20th. Finally, Robert W. Baird increased their price target on Darden Restaurants from $180.00 to $194.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Friday, December 20th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have issued a hold rating and seventeen have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Darden Restaurants has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $192.52.

About Darden Restaurants

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.