Signaturefd LLC Has $444,000 Stock Position in Darden Restaurants, Inc. (NYSE:DRI)

Signaturefd LLC grew its position in Darden Restaurants, Inc. (NYSE:DRI) by 23.7% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 2,703 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock after buying an additional 518 shares during the quarter. Signaturefd LLC’s holdings in Darden Restaurants were worth $444,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Fortitude Family Office LLC acquired a new position in shares of Darden Restaurants in the fourth quarter worth about $29,000. Hartford Financial Management Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of Darden Restaurants by 65.1% in the fourth quarter. Hartford Financial Management Inc. now owns 180 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock worth $30,000 after buying an additional 71 shares during the period. Tennessee Valley Asset Management Partners acquired a new position in shares of Darden Restaurants in the fourth quarter worth about $33,000. McGlone Suttner Wealth Management Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Darden Restaurants in the fourth quarter worth approximately $35,000. Finally, Ancora Advisors LLC lifted its position in shares of Darden Restaurants by 324.2% in the third quarter. Ancora Advisors LLC now owns 280 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock worth $40,000 after purchasing an additional 214 shares in the last quarter. 93.64% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Transactions at Darden Restaurants

In other news, insider Melvin John Martin sold 7,673 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, March 27th. The shares were sold at an average price of $165.52, for a total transaction of $1,270,034.96. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now owns 17,208 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,848,268.16. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. In related news, Director William S. Simon sold 1,219 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, April 8th. The shares were sold at an average price of $158.21, for a total value of $192,857.99. Following the completion of the sale, the director now owns 6,281 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $993,717.01. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, insider Melvin John Martin sold 7,673 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, March 27th. The shares were sold at an average price of $165.52, for a total transaction of $1,270,034.96. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now directly owns 17,208 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,848,268.16. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last 90 days, insiders sold 15,723 shares of company stock valued at $2,578,122. Corporate insiders own 0.85% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

DRI has been the subject of a number of research analyst reports. BMO Capital Markets increased their price target on shares of Darden Restaurants from $160.00 to $165.00 and gave the stock a “market perform” rating in a research report on Thursday, March 7th. Guggenheim increased their price target on shares of Darden Restaurants from $180.00 to $185.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, March 19th. Oppenheimer reduced their price target on shares of Darden Restaurants from $186.00 to $182.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, March 22nd. Wedbush reduced their price target on shares of Darden Restaurants from $187.00 to $181.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, March 22nd. Finally, Citigroup reduced their price target on shares of Darden Restaurants from $200.00 to $192.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, March 22nd. Five investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and fifteen have assigned a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $178.85.

Darden Restaurants Price Performance

NYSE:DRI opened at $156.61 on Thursday. Darden Restaurants, Inc. has a one year low of $133.36 and a one year high of $176.84. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.63, a current ratio of 0.39 and a quick ratio of 0.25. The stock has a market cap of $18.69 billion, a P/E ratio of 18.36, a PEG ratio of 1.70 and a beta of 1.25. The company has a fifty day moving average price of $164.79 and a 200 day moving average price of $159.12.

Darden Restaurants (NYSE:DRI) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, March 21st. The restaurant operator reported $2.62 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $2.63 by ($0.01). The firm had revenue of $2.97 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.02 billion. Darden Restaurants had a return on equity of 49.94% and a net margin of 9.24%. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 6.8% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the business posted $2.34 EPS. Analysts anticipate that Darden Restaurants, Inc. will post 8.85 earnings per share for the current year.

Darden Restaurants announced that its Board of Directors has authorized a share repurchase plan on Thursday, March 21st that authorizes the company to repurchase $1.00 billion in shares. This repurchase authorization authorizes the restaurant operator to buy up to 5% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares repurchase plans are typically an indication that the company’s board of directors believes its stock is undervalued.

Darden Restaurants Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, May 1st. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, April 10th will be issued a dividend of $1.31 per share. This represents a $5.24 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.35%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, April 9th. Darden Restaurants’s payout ratio is 61.43%.

Darden Restaurants Company Profile

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.