Darden Restaurants (NYSE:DRI) shares opened lower on Thursday after the restaurant operator offered a lackluster full-year profit forecast.
The company reported Q4 EPS of $2.58 on revenue of $2.8 billion, ahead of the expectations for EPS of $2.54 on sales of $2.77B. Overall, revenue rose 6.4% year-over-year while comparable sales increased 4%, missing the 4.2% analyst target.
"We had a solid quarter to conclude a strong year in which we met or exceeded our financial outlook, despite a tough operating environment," said Darden President & CEO Rick Cardenas.
CFO Raj Vennam highlighted the “difficult inflationary environment."
Darden said Olive Garden sales jumped 4.4% while LongHorn same-store sales rose as much as 7.1%.
For FY24, the company guided to EPS of $8.70 on revenue of $11.55B, which compares to the consensus of $8.81 on sales of $11.14B.
Darden shares are down 3.2% at the open.