Darden Restaurants, Inc. (NYSE:DRI) Sees Large Growth in Short Interest

Darden Restaurants, Inc. (NYSE:DRI) was the target of a large growth in short interest in January. As of January 15th, there was short interest totaling 6,603,379 shares, a growth of 22.5% from the December 31st total of 5,391,787 shares. Based on an average daily trading volume, of 1,985,809 shares, the short-interest ratio is presently 3.3 days. Currently, 5.8% of the company’s stock are sold short. Currently, 5.8% of the company’s stock are sold short. Based on an average daily trading volume, of 1,985,809 shares, the short-interest ratio is presently 3.3 days.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research analysts recently weighed in on DRI shares. Raymond James Financial restated a “market perform” rating on shares of Darden Restaurants in a research note on Wednesday, January 21st. TD Cowen restated a “hold” rating on shares of Darden Restaurants in a report on Friday, December 19th. Citigroup lowered their target price on shares of Darden Restaurants from $239.00 to $232.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, December 3rd. BMO Capital Markets boosted their target price on shares of Darden Restaurants from $205.00 to $220.00 and gave the stock a “market perform” rating in a research report on Tuesday, January 6th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut their price target on shares of Darden Restaurants from $240.00 to $230.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, October 6th. Twenty investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and nine have given a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, Darden Restaurants presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $224.78.

Insider Activity

In related news, insider Todd Burrowes sold 7,103 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, January 13th. The shares were sold at an average price of $207.12, for a total transaction of $1,471,173.36. Following the completion of the sale, the insider owned 44,252 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $9,165,474.24. This represents a 13.83% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, insider John W. Wilkerson sold 2,258 shares of Darden Restaurants stock in a transaction on Friday, January 16th. The stock was sold at an average price of $213.00, for a total transaction of $480,954.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider directly owned 17,784 shares in the company, valued at $3,787,992. This represents a 11.27% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Insiders have sold a total of 18,770 shares of company stock valued at $3,948,970 over the last 90 days. 0.49% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Trading of Darden Restaurants

Hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the stock. GAM Holding AG raised its position in Darden Restaurants by 0.7% during the second quarter. GAM Holding AG now owns 6,975 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock valued at $1,520,000 after acquiring an additional 51 shares in the last quarter. MAI Capital Management increased its holdings in shares of Darden Restaurants by 0.7% during the 2nd quarter. MAI Capital Management now owns 7,177 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock valued at $1,564,000 after purchasing an additional 52 shares in the last quarter. Avidian Wealth Enterprises LLC increased its holdings in shares of Darden Restaurants by 3.6% during the 2nd quarter. Avidian Wealth Enterprises LLC now owns 1,540 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock valued at $336,000 after purchasing an additional 54 shares in the last quarter. Concurrent Investment Advisors LLC lifted its stake in shares of Darden Restaurants by 1.7% in the 3rd quarter. Concurrent Investment Advisors LLC now owns 3,285 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock valued at $625,000 after purchasing an additional 55 shares during the period. Finally, apricus wealth LLC boosted its holdings in Darden Restaurants by 5.2% during the third quarter. apricus wealth LLC now owns 1,141 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock worth $217,000 after buying an additional 56 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 93.64% of the company’s stock.

Darden Restaurants Stock Performance

NYSE DRI traded up $4.54 during trading hours on Tuesday, reaching $205.44. The stock had a trading volume of 1,449,648 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,612,738. Darden Restaurants has a 52-week low of $169.00 and a 52-week high of $228.27. The stock has a fifty day moving average of $192.50 and a 200 day moving average of $193.57. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.03, a quick ratio of 0.26 and a current ratio of 0.39. The stock has a market cap of $23.65 billion, a P/E ratio of 21.53, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.93 and a beta of 0.64.

Darden Restaurants (NYSE:DRI) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, December 18th. The restaurant operator reported $2.08 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $2.10 by ($0.02). The business had revenue of $3.10 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.07 billion. Darden Restaurants had a net margin of 8.92% and a return on equity of 52.44%. The business’s revenue was up 7.3% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $2.03 earnings per share. Darden Restaurants has set its FY 2026 guidance at 10.500-10.700 EPS. Sell-side analysts predict that Darden Restaurants will post 9.52 earnings per share for the current year.

Darden Restaurants Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, February 2nd. Shareholders of record on Friday, January 9th were given a dividend of $1.50 per share. This represents a $6.00 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.9%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, January 9th. Darden Restaurants’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 62.89%.

Darden Restaurants Company 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.