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Laura B. Williamson, President of LongHorn Steakhouse at Darden Restaurants Inc (NYSE:DRI), reported selling 332.8629 shares of Darden Restaurants Inc common stock on July 21, 2025. The shares were sold at a price of $206.81, totaling $68,839. The transaction comes as Darden, currently valued at $23.7 billion, maintains strong market momentum with a 41% return over the past year. According to InvestingPro analysis, the company trades near its Fair Value, supported by 14 analysts recently revising earnings estimates upward.
According to a Form 4 filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission, Williamson also reported multiple transactions related to the exercise of stock options and restricted stock units. On July 27 and 28, Williamson exercised options to acquire a total of 2252.8629 shares of common stock, with the prices reported as $0. The company has demonstrated strong financial stability, maintaining dividend payments for 31 consecutive years with a current yield of 3%.
Additionally, on July 27 and 28, Williamson disposed of 464 shares of common stock at a price of $204.48 per share, totaling $153,973. For deeper insights into Darden’s valuation metrics and growth potential, access the comprehensive Pro Research Report available on InvestingPro, which covers over 1,400 top US stocks.
In other recent news, Darden Restaurants reported fiscal fourth-quarter earnings that slightly exceeded analyst expectations, posting adjusted earnings per share of $2.98 compared to the consensus estimate of $2.97. The company also reported revenue of $3.272 billion, surpassing expectations of $3.265 billion, and achieved restaurant margins of 21.6%, outperforming the projected 21.3%. Despite this positive performance, Darden issued a conservative outlook for fiscal year 2026, which was below analyst expectations. In response, Truist Securities reiterated its buy rating with a price target of $252, while Stephens raised its price target to $212 from $200, maintaining an Equal Weight rating. Melius Research initiated coverage on Darden with a Hold rating and a price target of $240, describing the company as a model of consistency in full-service dining. BTIG also maintained a Buy rating with a $235 price target, highlighting strong sales and positive traffic at Olive Garden and LongHorn Steakhouse. These developments underscore a mix of optimistic and cautious perspectives from analysts regarding Darden’s future performance.
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