Citigroup Increases Darden Restaurants (NYSE:DRI) Price Target to $248.00

Darden Restaurants (NYSE:DRI) had its price objective upped by stock analysts at Citigroup from $245.00 to $248.00 in a report released on Friday, Benzinga reports. The brokerage presently has a “buy” rating on the restaurant operator’s stock. Citigroup’s price objective points to a potential upside of 18.51% from the stock’s current price.

Other analysts have also issued reports about the stock. BTIG Research lifted their price target on shares of Darden Restaurants from $225.00 to $235.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, June 26th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft raised their target price on shares of Darden Restaurants from $230.00 to $236.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, June 26th. Evercore lowered shares of Darden Restaurants from an “outperform” rating to an “in-line” rating and set a $230.00 target price for the company. in a research note on Tuesday, June 23rd. KeyCorp raised their price target on Darden Restaurants from $228.00 to $237.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Thursday, August 27th. Finally, Bank of America lifted their price objective on Darden Restaurants from $272.00 to $276.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, June 5th. Eighteen research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and nine have issued a Hold rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $230.79.

Darden Restaurants Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE:DRI traded up $1.73 during midday trading on Friday, reaching $209.26. 281,596 shares of the company’s stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 1,328,052. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.74, a quick ratio of 0.21 and a current ratio of 0.31. Darden Restaurants has a one year low of $169.00 and a one year high of $229.76. The company has a market cap of $23.87 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 20.17, a P/E/G ratio of 1.97 and a beta of 0.60. The stock has a 50 day moving average of $210.02 and a 200 day moving average of $204.71.

Darden Restaurants (NYSE:DRI) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, June 25th. The restaurant operator reported $3.66 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 company had revenue of $3.72 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $3.73 billion. During the same period last year, the company earned $2.98 EPS. 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. As a group, equities research analysts anticipate that Darden Restaurants will post 11.25 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Darden Restaurants news, SVP Susan Connelly sold 9,930 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, July 7th. The shares were sold at an average price of $206.21, for a total value of $2,047,665.30. Following the transaction, the senior vice president directly owned 4,165 shares in the company, valued at approximately $858,864.65. This trade represents a 70.45% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, insider Laura Williamson sold 1,110 shares of Darden Restaurants stock in a transaction on Friday, July 31st. The stock was sold at an average price of $204.32, for a total transaction of $226,795.20. Following the transaction, the insider owned 10,754 shares in the company, valued at $2,197,257.28. This represents a 9.36% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. In the last ninety days, insiders sold 70,185 shares of company stock valued at $14,636,984. 0.67% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Trading of Darden Restaurants

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of DRI. Union Savings Bank purchased a new position in shares of Darden Restaurants during the 4th quarter valued at about $28,000. Bell Investment Advisors Inc bought a new position in shares of Darden Restaurants in the second quarter worth approximately $28,000. BOK Financial Private Wealth Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Darden Restaurants in the fourth quarter worth $29,000. DV Equities LLC bought a new stake in shares of Darden Restaurants during the 4th quarter valued at $30,000. Finally, Transamerica Financial Advisors LLC purchased a new position in shares of Darden Restaurants during the 2nd quarter valued at $34,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 93.64% of the company’s stock.

About Darden Restaurants

Darden Restaurants, Inc (NYSE: DRI) is a full-service restaurant company headquartered in Orlando, Florida. It operates and franchises a portfolio of dining brands serving a range of cuisines, price points and occasions, with restaurants primarily located in the United States and select international markets.

Its restaurant portfolio includes Olive Garden, an Italian-American dining chain; LongHorn Steakhouse; Cheddar’s Scratch Kitchen; Yard House; The Capital Grille; Seasons 52; Bahama Breeze; Eddie V’s; Ruth’s Chris Steak House; and Chuy’s.