<div id="readability-page-1"><p><span>Darden Restaurants (NYSE:DRI - Get Free Report)</span> had its target price increased by BMO Capital Markets  from $205.00 to $220.00 in a research note issued on Tuesday,Benzinga reports. The brokerage currently has a &#34;market perform&#34; rating on the restaurant operator's stock. BMO Capital Markets' target price would suggest a potential upside of 14.28% from the company's previous close.</p><div><p><span></span><span>Get <strong>Darden Restaurants</strong> alerts:</span></p></div><ul><li>MarketBeat Week in Review – 12/22 - 12/26</li></ul><p>Other research analysts have also issued research reports about the company. Stephens  restated an &#34;equal weight&#34; rating and set a $205.00 price objective on shares of Darden Restaurants in a research report on Friday, December 19th. Jefferies Financial Group reduced their price target on shares of Darden Restaurants from $210.00 to $200.00 and set a &#34;hold&#34; rating for the company in a report on Monday, December 15th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft dropped their price objective on shares of Darden Restaurants from $239.00 to $220.00 and set a &#34;buy&#34; rating on the stock in a report on Friday, September 19th. KeyCorp  reissued an &#34;overweight&#34; rating on shares of Darden Restaurants in a research note on Friday, December 19th. Finally, TD Cowen  restated a &#34;hold&#34; rating and issued a $235.00 target price on shares of Darden Restaurants in a research report on Thursday, September 18th. Nineteen analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and twelve have given a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of &#34;Moderate Buy&#34; and a consensus price target of $224.29.</p><p><b>Get Our Latest Stock Analysis on DRI</b></p><h2>Darden Restaurants Stock Performance</h2><ul><li>Darden Restaurants, Inc.: This is What a Strong Signal Looks Like</li></ul><p>Darden Restaurants stock opened at $192.52 on Tuesday. The company has a market cap of $22.39 billion, a PE ratio of 20.18, a P/E/G ratio of 1.79 and a beta of 0.64. Darden Restaurants has a 12 month low of $169.00 and a 12 month high of $228.27. The company has a fifty day moving average price of $180.49 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $195.21. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.03, a current ratio of 0.39 and a quick ratio of 0.26. </p><p>Darden Restaurants (NYSE:DRI - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, December 18th. The restaurant operator reported $2.08 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $2.10 by ($0.02). The business had revenue of $3.10 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.07 billion. Darden Restaurants had a net margin of 8.92% and a return on equity of 52.44%. The company's quarterly revenue was up 7.3% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the firm posted $2.03 earnings per share. Darden Restaurants has set its FY 2026 guidance at 10.500-10.700 EPS.  Research analysts expect that  Darden Restaurants will post 9.52 earnings per share for the current year. </p><h2>Institutional Trading of Darden Restaurants</h2><ul><li>Higher Beef Prices Are Here: Best Steakhouse Stocks for 2026</li></ul><p>A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the company. Midwest Trust Co bought a new position in shares of  Darden Restaurants in the second quarter valued at approximately $2,441,000.  Nisa Investment Advisors LLC grew its stake in  Darden Restaurants by 12.7% in the 2nd quarter. Nisa Investment Advisors LLC now owns 42,550 shares of the restaurant operator's stock valued at $9,275,000 after buying an additional 4,804 shares during the last quarter.  Rockefeller Capital Management L.P. raised its holdings in  Darden Restaurants by 19.7% in the 2nd quarter. Rockefeller Capital Management L.P. now owns 23,352 shares of the restaurant operator's stock worth $5,090,000 after acquiring an additional 3,844 shares during the period.  Capital Management Associates Inc acquired a new position in  Darden Restaurants during the 2nd quarter worth $795,000.  Finally, Campbell &amp; CO Investment Adviser LLC acquired a new position in  Darden Restaurants during the 2nd quarter worth $1,983,000. Institutional investors own  93.64% of the company's stock. </p><h2>Darden Restaurants Company Profile</h2> (Get Free Report)<p>Darden Restaurants, Inc is a multi-brand, full-service restaurant company headquartered in Orlando, Florida. The company owns and operates a portfolio of casual and fine-dining concepts that together serve millions of guests through company-owned and franchised locations. Its well-known brands include Olive Garden and LongHorn Steakhouse, alongside other dining concepts that span Italian, American, steakhouse and upscale casual formats.  </p><p>Darden's restaurants provide a range of guest-facing services including dine-in, takeout, delivery and catering, and feature menus tailored to each brand's positioning—Italian-American fare at Olive Garden, steaks and grilled items at LongHorn, and more premium steakhouse and chef-driven offerings at its upscale concepts.</p><h2>Further Reading</h2><ul><li>Five stocks we like better than Darden Restaurants</li><li>A month before the crash</li><li>Elon Warns “America Is Broke”. Trump’s Plan Inside.</li><li>BNZI: BNZI Surges Ahead as AI Marketing Fuels Record Revenue</li><li>Ticker Revealed: Pre-IPO Access to &#34;Next Elon Musk&#34; Company</li><li>A U.S. “birthright” claim worth trillions - activated quietly</li></ul><p><img src="https://imageproxy.pbkrs.com/https://www.marketbeat.com/scripts/RatingsAndPriceTargetChart.ashx/query-UHJlZml4PU5ZU0UmU3ltYm9sPURSSQ?x-oss-process=image/auto-orient,1/interlace,1/resize,w_1440,h_1440/quality,q_95/format,jpg" width="650" height="330" original-src="https://imageproxy.pbkrs.com/https://www.marketbeat.com/scripts/RatingsAndPriceTargetChart.ashx/query-UHJlZml4PU5ZU0UmU3ltYm9sPURSSQ"/></p><p><em>This instant news alert was generated by narrative science technology and financial data from MarketBeat in order to provide readers with the fastest reporting and unbiased coverage. Please send any questions or comments about this story to contact@marketbeat.com.</em></p><h2>Should You Invest $1,000 in Darden Restaurants Right Now?</h2><p>Before you consider Darden Restaurants, you'll want to hear this.</p><p>MarketBeat keeps track of Wall Street's top-rated and best performing research analysts and the stocks they recommend to their clients on a daily basis. MarketBeat has identified the five stocks that top analysts are quietly whispering to their clients to buy now before the broader market catches on... and Darden Restaurants wasn't on the list.</p><p>While Darden Restaurants currently has a Moderate Buy rating among analysts, top-rated analysts believe these five stocks are better buys.</p><p>View The Five Stocks Here</p>                  </div>

<p>BMO Capital Markets has raised its target price for Darden Restaurants (NYSE: DRI) from $205.00 to $220.00, maintaining a "market perform" rating. This new target suggests a potential upside of 14.28% from the previous close. Other analysts have varied opinions, with ratings ranging from "buy" to "hold" and target prices between $200.00 and $239.00. Darden's stock opened at $192.52, with a market cap of $22.39 billion and a recent quarterly EPS of $2.08, slightly below estimates. Institutional investors hold 93.64% of the company's stock.</p>

Darden Restaurants (NYSE:DRI) Given New $220.00 Price Target at BMO Capital Markets