US · Consumer Discretionary
Darden Restaurants (DRI) stock research: earnings, ownership, and cash flow
Darden Restaurants operates in the Restaurants industry within the Consumer Discretionary sector and is a constituent of the S&P 500. This page connects filing evidence with ownership, insider activity, forecasts, ETFs, and peer context so each dataset can be checked against the others.
Deterministic, source-linked commentary
The current research read on DRI
Darden Restaurants's latest filing sets the operating baseline. 10-Q covers CY2026Q1. quarterly revenue was $3.3B; year-over-year growth was 5.9%; operating margin was 12.1%; trailing free cash flow was $542.6M. Read together, these figures test whether scale is translating into profit and cash. Verify periods and company footnotes in the original SEC EDGAR filing.
The valuation range should move when DRI's operating assumptions move. The forecast scenarios were updated 2026-06-26. Revenue growth, margins, cash generation, and risk assumptions must be checked against each new filing. Compare them with the latest earnings analysis.
The useful next step is to test DRI from another angle. Use institutional ownership, insider filings, earnings analysis, forecast scenarios alongside the filing. Company facts can update before 13F positions, so align every source date and report period before treating a difference as a change in fundamentals.
Business model
Company snapshot
Darden Restaurants operates in the Restaurants industry within the Consumer Discretionary sector and is a constituent of the S&P 500. The latest standardized snapshot records $12.65B of trailing revenue, $1.13B of net income, and $542.6M of free cash flow. These figures describe the reported company, while valuation and price require a separate market-data timestamp.
Operating lines
A named product, service, or operating exposure identified in the company description.
A named product, service, or operating exposure identified in the company description.
Geographic revenue mix
The current standardized filing dataset does not extract a comparable geographic revenue table for every issuer. Review the latest 10-K segment note for domestic and international mix, concentration, foreign-exchange sensitivity, and country-specific regulation.
10-Q · 2026-03-27
What the latest filing shows
Revenue for the latest standardized quarter was $3.35B, while diluted EPS was 2.65. Revenue changed 5.9% from the comparable period. Gross margin was 21% and operating margin was 12.1%. Margin direction matters because it shows whether growth is translating into operating leverage or requiring more cost to support.
Open original SEC filingEarnings & filings
DRI earnings calls, releases, and filing evidence
Earnings calls
No authorized call transcript summary is available yet for this ticker.
Filings & announcements
Q4 FY2026 · Earnings Release Summary
Q4 sales: $3.72B, +13.7% Y/Y; Same-restaurant sales: +4.6%; LongHorn +9.5%; Adjusted EPS: $3.66 Q4; $10.64 FY2026
Source: Darden fiscal Q4 2026 results · 2026-06-20Earnings history
| Date | Period | Status | Revenue | EPS | Source |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2026-06-20 | Q4 FY2026 | Reported | N/A | $3.66 | Darden fiscal Q4 2026 results |
| 2026-03-27 | CY2026Q1 | Standardized data | $3.35B | 2.65 | SEC |
CY2026Q1
Earnings analysis
| Period | Revenue | Net income | EPS | Operating margin |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| CY2026Q1 | $3.35B | $306.8M | 2.65 | 12.1% |
| TTM | $12.65B | $1.13B | 9.61 | 11.7% |
| CY2024 | $12.08B | $1.05B | See filing | 11.3% |
Darden Restaurants's fiscal Q4 2026 report should be read as a stock-outlook reset, not just a beat-or-miss event. The key facts are $3.72B Q4 sales, up 13.7% year over year, blended same-restaurant sales increased 4.6%, led by LongHorn at 9.5% and Olive Garden at 2.4%, $3.54 diluted EPS from continuing operations and $3.66 adjusted diluted EPS, and fiscal 2027 outlook calls for $13.60B-$13.75B sales, 2.5%-3.5% same-restaurant sales growth, and $11.10-$11.35 EPS. Bottom line: the report improves the setup only if those numbers support whether Darden can keep compounding restaurant sales after a strong year and an extra-week Q4 boost.
Read detailed earnings analysisScenario analysis
Forecast range
After Darden Restaurants's latest earnings report, a practical 2026 scenario map for DRI is $160-191 in a bear case, $196-245 in a base case, and $251-309 in a bull case. The forecast is anchored to a post-earnings price of $212.76, market value near $24.6B, and the latest reported guidance.
Forecast assumptions
- Revenue growth must be checked against the latest filing and management guidance.
- Current reported operating margin is 11.7%.
- TTM free-cash-flow margin is 4.3%.
- Discount rates and valuation multiples should move when risk-free rates, business risk, or estimate confidence changes.
This is not a buy or sell recommendation. Forecasts are conditional ranges whose assumptions can fail.
Open forecast methodology and scenariosConsumer Discretionary
Peer comparison
| Company | TTM revenue | Revenue growth | Operating margin | Tracked holders |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| DRIDarden Restaurants | $12.65B | 5.9% | 11.7% | 0 |
| ABNBAirbnb | $12.14B | 17.9% | 19.4% | 0 |
| CMGChipotle Mexican Grill | $12.03B | 7.4% | 15.9% | 2 |
| HLTHilton Worldwide | $11.89B | 9% | 23.3% | 1 |
| ULTAUlta Beauty | $11.66B | 11.1% | 12.9% | 0 |
| DASHDoorDash | $13.8B | 33.1% | 5.3% | 0 |
| LVSLas Vegas Sands | $13.9B | 12.9% | 21.9% | 0 |
DRI's 5.9% revenue growth and 11.7% operating margin should be read against peers using the same reporting definitions. A higher margin may reflect pricing power or business mix, while a lower margin can reflect investment, cyclicality, or weaker economics.
10-K · 2025-07-18
Key risk factors disclosed in the latest 10-K
The categories below are a deterministic research checklist anchored to Darden Restaurants's industry and latest annual filing. They summarize areas investors should locate in Item 1A; they do not replace the company's exact legal disclosure.
- Demand and product-cycle risk: Restaurants can experience changing customer demand, replacement cycles, and competitive product launches that affect revenue timing.
- Competition and execution: Market share depends on product quality, pricing, distribution, innovation, and management's ability to convert investment into durable customer demand.
- Supply chain and counterparties: Supplier concentration, logistics disruption, component availability, and customer concentration can affect delivery schedules, costs, and working capital.
- Regulation and litigation: Antitrust, privacy, securities, labor, tax, environmental, and industry-specific rules may change costs or restrict products and business practices.
- Financial and market risk: Foreign exchange, interest rates, credit conditions, investment values, and capital-allocation decisions can affect reported earnings and valuation.
Shareholder returns
Dividend and buyback history
Dividend
Darden Restaurants reported $665.6M of dividends paid over the trailing period and $175.1M in the latest standardized quarter. These are company cash outflows, not a per-share forward yield.
Share buybacks
The standardized snapshot does not currently expose a reliable repurchase authorization and share-count bridge for every issuer. Compare diluted shares outstanding across filings and read the capital-return note before concluding that buybacks reduced the share base.
Research workflow
Common research questions about DRI
Who is the largest tracked institutional holder of DRI?
The current tracked-manager sample does not identify an active DRI holder. The DRI ownership page will reflect a matching position when one enters the filing dataset.
What does recent insider activity show for DRI?
No recent Form 4 transaction appears in the current DRI window. Check the DRI Form 4 history for later company-officer or director filings.
What business does Darden Restaurants operate?
Darden Restaurants operates in the Restaurants industry within the Consumer Discretionary sector and is a constituent of the S&P 500. The DRI company snapshot connects that business description with reported revenue, profit, and cash flow.
How does DRI compare with a close operating peer?
DRI's revenue growth is 5.9% and its operating margin is 11.7%. Compare those figures with ABNB research using the same definitions.
What do the latest financials say about DRI?
10-Q reports $12.7B of trailing revenue, with revenue growth of 5.9% and an operating margin of 11.7%. The supporting period and source are listed in the DRI filing section.
How strong is DRI's cash return profile?
Darden Restaurants reported $665.6M of trailing dividends paid alongside $542.6M of free cash flow. The DRI capital-return section separates company cash outflows from a forward per-share yield.
Which assumptions matter most for the DRI outlook?
The DRI range depends on revenue growth, operating margin, cash conversion, and the risk assumptions in each new filing. Recheck them in the DRI forecast section.
Primary and reference data
Sources and methodology
- Filings: SEC EDGAR CompanyFacts, 10-K, 10-Q, 8-K, Form 4, 13F-HR.
- Fundamentals: SEC EDGAR CompanyFacts; market references may use yfinance and Finnhub where explicitly available.
- ETF: Issuer disclosures and the locally dated ETF holdings snapshot.
Methodology: How SnowballHare parses and validates data.
Editorial standards: How research is published.
Disclaimer: Informational only; not investment, legal, or tax advice. Cross-check material facts against original filings before acting.
Reference notes
Data notes
Reporting dates
Use filing dates, report periods, and source links together for DRI. A company filing, a 13F disclosure, a Form 4 transaction, and an earnings release can describe different time windows, so the date beside each row matters before comparing signals.
Ownership context
13F rows are delayed public long-equity snapshots from a selected manager universe. They are useful for seeing which tracked institutions reported exposure, but they do not show every hedge, short position, cash balance, or trade made after the quarter ended.
Insider transactions
Form 4 activity should be read by transaction type, role, value, and remaining ownership. Open-market purchases and sales are different from grants, option exercises, gifts, or tax withholding, and the original SEC filing is still the controlling document.
Earnings and forecasts
Earnings pages and forecast pages are linked when a supported article exists. Treat those pages as context for reported numbers, guidance, margins, and scenario assumptions, then return to the table data when you need the underlying source date or filing trail.