Darden Restaurants, Inc. $DRI Shares Bought by Flputnam Investment Management Co.

Flputnam Investment Management Co. increased its position in Darden Restaurants, Inc. (NYSE:DRI) by 62.8% in the third quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 81,185 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock after purchasing an additional 31,311 shares during the period. Flputnam Investment Management Co.’s holdings in Darden Restaurants were worth $15,454,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Twin Peaks Wealth Advisors LLC bought a new stake in shares of Darden Restaurants in the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $26,000. True Wealth Design LLC increased its stake in Darden Restaurants by 419.2% during the second quarter. True Wealth Design LLC now owns 135 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock valued at $29,000 after purchasing an additional 109 shares during the last quarter. Elevation Point Wealth Partners LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Darden Restaurants during the second quarter worth $29,000. Rise Advisors LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Darden Restaurants by 32.2% in the 1st quarter. Rise Advisors LLC now owns 201 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock valued at $42,000 after buying an additional 49 shares during the period. Finally, Atlantic Union Bankshares Corp acquired a new position in shares of Darden Restaurants in the 2nd quarter valued at about $44,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 93.64% of the company’s stock.

Darden Restaurants Trading Down 1.5%

Shares of Darden Restaurants stock opened at $189.91 on Friday. The business has a fifty day simple moving average of $180.27 and a 200-day simple moving average of $197.81. Darden Restaurants, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $169.00 and a fifty-two week high of $228.27. The firm has a market cap of $22.09 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 19.91, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.84 and a beta of 0.66. The company has a quick ratio of 0.27, a current ratio of 0.39 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.03.

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

Darden Restaurants Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, February 2nd. Investors of record on Friday, January 9th will be paid a $1.50 dividend. This represents a $6.00 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.2%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, January 9th. Darden Restaurants’s dividend payout ratio is currently 64.31%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

DRI has been the topic of a number of research reports. Evercore ISI reiterated an “outperform” rating on shares of Darden Restaurants in a research report on Friday. KeyCorp restated an “overweight” rating on shares of Darden Restaurants in a research note on Friday. Stephens reaffirmed an “equal weight” rating and issued a $205.00 target price on shares of Darden Restaurants in a research report on Friday. Morgan Stanley reduced their price target on shares of Darden Restaurants from $238.00 to $236.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Friday, December 12th. Finally, Sanford C. Bernstein restated an “outperform” rating on shares of Darden Restaurants in a research report on Friday. Nineteen analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and twelve have issued a Hold rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $223.39.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, SVP Matthew R. Broad sold 5,661 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, October 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $193.40, for a total value of $1,094,837.40. Following the completion of the sale, the senior vice president directly owned 13,916 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,691,354.40. This represents a 28.92% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Insiders own 0.49% of the company’s stock.

More Darden Restaurants News

Here are the key news stories impacting Darden Restaurants this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Raised revenue outlook and solid top‑line — Darden reported revenue of $3.10B (+7.3% y/y) and strong comps at Olive Garden and LongHorn, and raised its full‑year sales outlook, a clear positive for growth expectations. PR Newswire: Q2 results & outlook
• Positive Sentiment: Strong analyst buy support — Multiple firms reiterated buy ratings and bullish price targets (Bank of America kept a Buy with a $261 target; BTIG reaffirmed Buy at $225; Stifel maintained bullish stance), supporting upside sentiment. TipRanks: BofA reiterates Buy
• Positive Sentiment: Dividend and cash returns remain attractive — Darden declared a $1.50 quarterly dividend (roughly a 3% yield), which supports income investors and signals confidence in cash flow. Seeking Alpha: Dividend declared
• Neutral Sentiment: FY26 EPS guidance roughly in line — Darden set FY2026 EPS guidance at $10.50–$10.70, close to consensus, which reduces uncertainty but doesn’t materially change the valuation picture. MarketBeat: Guidance and call
• Neutral Sentiment: Mixed analyst views on valuation — Some firms reiterate Hold/Equal‑Weight ratings citing full valuation despite solid execution, suggesting limited near‑term upside for investors who focus on valuation. TickerReport: Stephens equal weight
• Negative Sentiment: Slight EPS miss pressured the stock — Reported EPS was $2.08 vs. the $2.09 consensus (a $0.01 miss), which, despite being tiny, triggered downside given elevated expectations and the stock’s recent run. Benzinga: What’s going on with DRI stock?
• Negative Sentiment: Margin pressure from commodity costs — Beef and other commodity inflation compressed margins (especially at LongHorn); management expects easing but cost pressure remains a near‑term risk to profitability. Seeking Alpha: Margin pressure analysis
• Negative Sentiment: Unusual put buying and insider selling — Elevated put option activity and notable insider share sales were reported, which can add short‑term downside pressure or signal caution among some market participants. QuiverQuant: Options & insider activity

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.