Hamlin Capital Management LLC Has $145.06 Million Stock Position in Darden Restaurants, Inc. (NYSE:DRI)

Hamlin Capital Management LLC trimmed its position in Darden Restaurants, Inc. (NYSE:DRI) by 0.1% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 777,016 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock after selling 917 shares during the quarter. Darden Restaurants makes up 3.6% of Hamlin Capital Management LLC’s portfolio, making the stock its 19th biggest position. Hamlin Capital Management LLC owned 0.66% of Darden Restaurants worth $145,061,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in DRI. Crossmark Global Holdings Inc. boosted its holdings in Darden Restaurants by 16.7% during the fourth quarter. Crossmark Global Holdings Inc. now owns 8,603 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock worth $1,606,000 after buying an additional 1,229 shares during the last quarter. Ellsworth Advisors LLC bought a new position in Darden Restaurants during the fourth quarter worth about $6,177,000. Bowman & Co S.C. boosted its holdings in Darden Restaurants by 1.0% during the fourth quarter. Bowman & Co S.C. now owns 9,065 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock worth $1,693,000 after buying an additional 92 shares during the last quarter. HB Wealth Management LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Darden Restaurants by 13.8% during the 4th quarter. HB Wealth Management LLC now owns 4,651 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock valued at $868,000 after purchasing an additional 563 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Sanibel Captiva Trust Company Inc. bought a new position in shares of Darden Restaurants during the 4th quarter valued at about $275,000. 93.64% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research firms have recently weighed in on DRI. Stifel Nicolaus lifted their price objective on Darden Restaurants from $190.00 to $205.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, December 20th. BMO Capital Markets boosted their price target on Darden Restaurants from $165.00 to $175.00 and gave the stock a “market perform” rating in a research report on Friday, December 20th. Morgan Stanley boosted their price target on Darden Restaurants from $193.00 to $209.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Monday, December 23rd. Wedbush boosted their price target on Darden Restaurants from $200.00 to $220.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Friday, December 20th. Finally, Bank of America boosted their price target on Darden Restaurants from $195.00 to $211.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, December 20th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have given a hold rating and sixteen have issued a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $189.12.

Darden Restaurants Price Performance

Shares of DRI stock opened at $181.58 on Tuesday. The company has a quick ratio of 0.23, a current ratio of 0.37 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.02. Darden Restaurants, Inc. has a twelve month low of $135.87 and a twelve month high of $189.18. The company has a market cap of $21.27 billion, a P/E ratio of 20.80, a P/E/G ratio of 2.00 and a beta of 1.31. The business has a fifty day simple moving average of $175.97 and a 200 day simple moving average of $162.45.

Darden Restaurants (NYSE:DRI) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, December 19th. The restaurant operator reported $2.03 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, hitting analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.03. Darden Restaurants had a return on equity of 50.12% and a net margin of 9.01%. The business had revenue of $2.89 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $2.87 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $1.84 EPS. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 6.0% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, sell-side analysts forecast that Darden Restaurants, Inc. will post 9.52 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Darden Restaurants Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, February 3rd. Shareholders of record on Friday, January 10th will be issued a $1.40 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, January 10th. This represents a $5.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.08%. Darden Restaurants’s payout ratio is presently 64.15%.

Insider Activity

In related news, SVP Susan M. Connelly sold 9,264 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, January 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $184.68, for a total transaction of $1,710,875.52. Following the completion of the sale, the senior vice president now owns 4,567 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $843,433.56. This trade represents a 66.98 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Also, CFO Rajesh Vennam sold 7,228 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, December 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $181.71, for a total value of $1,313,399.88. Following the sale, the chief financial officer now directly owns 10,262 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,864,708.02. This represents a 41.33 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last quarter, insiders sold 32,275 shares of company stock valued at $5,913,038. Company insiders own 0.58% of the company’s stock.

Darden Restaurants 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.