Q3 EPS Forecast for Darden Restaurants Decreased by Analyst

Darden Restaurants, Inc. (NYSE:DRI) – Zacks Research dropped their Q3 2026 earnings per share estimates for shares of Darden Restaurants in a research report issued to clients and investors on Wednesday, December 31st. Zacks Research analyst Team now forecasts that the restaurant operator will post earnings per share of $2.96 for the quarter, down from their previous estimate of $2.97. The consensus estimate for Darden Restaurants’ current full-year earnings is $9.52 per share. Zacks Research also issued estimates for Darden Restaurants’ Q4 2026 earnings at $3.55 EPS, FY2026 earnings at $10.56 EPS, Q1 2027 earnings at $2.10 EPS, Q2 2027 earnings at $2.26 EPS, Q3 2027 earnings at $3.30 EPS, Q4 2027 earnings at $3.62 EPS, FY2027 earnings at $11.29 EPS, Q1 2028 earnings at $2.16 EPS and Q2 2028 earnings at $2.62 EPS.

Darden Restaurants (NYSE:DRI) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, December 18th. The restaurant operator reported $2.08 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $2.10 by ($0.02). 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 during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $3.07 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $2.03 earnings per share. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 7.3% on a year-over-year basis. Darden Restaurants has set its FY 2026 guidance at 10.500-10.700 EPS.

Several other equities analysts also recently issued reports on DRI. Wells Fargo & Company decreased their price objective on shares of Darden Restaurants from $225.00 to $200.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, September 19th. Truist Financial cut their target price on Darden Restaurants from $252.00 to $240.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, September 19th. Guggenheim decreased their target price on Darden Restaurants from $235.00 to $230.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, December 17th. Cowen restated a “hold” rating on shares of Darden Restaurants in a research note on Friday, December 19th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut their price target on Darden Restaurants from $240.00 to $230.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, October 6th. Nineteen investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and twelve have issued a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Darden Restaurants has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $223.75.

Darden Restaurants Trading Up 2.8%

Shares of Darden Restaurants stock opened at $192.52 on Monday. The company has a current ratio of 0.39, a quick ratio of 0.26 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.03. The company has a fifty day simple moving average of $180.49 and a 200-day simple moving average of $195.21. The stock has a market cap of $22.39 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 20.18, a PEG ratio of 1.79 and a beta of 0.64. Darden Restaurants has a 12-month low of $169.00 and a 12-month high of $228.27.

Institutional Trading of Darden Restaurants

A number of hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted its position in Darden Restaurants by 78.4% in the third quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 2,666,919 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock valued at $507,675,000 after purchasing an additional 1,171,890 shares during the period. Wellington Management Group LLP raised its stake 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 worth $849,726,000 after buying an additional 1,102,211 shares in the last quarter. Marshall Wace LLP lifted its holdings in shares of Darden Restaurants by 820.4% in the 2nd quarter. Marshall Wace LLP now owns 706,416 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock valued at $153,977,000 after buying an additional 629,669 shares during the period. Invesco Ltd. lifted its holdings in shares of Darden Restaurants by 45.2% in the 2nd quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 1,917,398 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock valued at $417,935,000 after buying an additional 596,863 shares during the period. Finally, Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership boosted its stake in shares of Darden Restaurants by 192.6% in 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 in the last quarter. 93.64% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Darden Restaurants Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, February 2nd. Investors of record on Friday, January 9th will be given a $1.50 dividend. This represents a $6.00 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.1%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, January 9th. Darden Restaurants’s payout ratio is 62.89%.

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.