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Darden Restaurants

DRI
54
Restaurants · Consumer Cyclical
Also trades as: 0I77.L GBP 2.12 (-1.60%)
Price
$212.40
-5.16 (-2.37%)
Market Cap
$24.03B
Winston Score
54
Winston is curious
Mixed quality — meaningful strengths and weaknesses.
Data as of Oct 24, 2026 · filings through Aug 30, 2026

§How the score breaks down

Quality
Good
19/30
Growth
Good
13/20
Cash Flow
Strong
7/10
Stability
Mixed
4/10
Valuation
Good
6/10
Ownership
Weak
2/15
Dividends
Good
3/5

54 of 100 counted points = Winston Score 54.

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Share count falling — buybacks

−10.7% over 4y

The company has reduced its share count over this period, returning value to shareholders through buybacks.

Diluted shares outstanding: 129.0M (2022) → 115.2M (2026)

§Winston Score History

The full picture

Darden Restaurants owns and operates a large portfolio of full-service restaurant chains across the United States and Canada. Its most well-known brands include Olive Garden, LongHorn Steakhouse, and fine dining chains like The Capital Grille and Eddie V's. Darden is one of the largest full-service restaurant companies in the United States, serving everyday diners as well as customers looking for a more upscale meal.

Darden makes money by selling food and drinks directly to customers at its restaurants, which it mostly owns and operates rather than franchises. The company runs over 1,900 locations, almost entirely in North America, and its scale gives it an advantage in purchasing ingredients and managing costs. The main risk Darden faces is that when the economy slows down and consumers feel financial pressure, people tend to cut back on eating out, which can hurt sales across all of its brands.

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Growth Profile

When traditional metrics don't capture the full picture, these are the signals growth stock investors use instead.

Revenue Growth

+5.1% YoY

YoY Growth Rate

Slow revenue growth

Reported EPS Growth

-7.2% YoY

Quarterly reporting periods ended:

31 Aug 2025: $2.21

30 Aug 2026: $2.05

Reported/statutory EPS, not adjusted or underlying earnings. One-off items can affect this figure. Provider rounding can affect the growth rate.

YoY Growth Rate

Reported EPS decreased year over year

R&D Spend

$0/ year

0.0% of revenue

Below sector average (4%)

Research and development spending

Insider Activity

0.7%ownership

→ Flat

Insider ownership roughly steady over the past year

Cash Position

Cash flow positive

$221M cash & investments

Quarterly Free Cash Flow

↓ Burn rate worsening

Company generates more cash than it spends — no dilution risk from fundraising

Growth context

Darden Restaurants is growing revenue at 5% year-over-year. The Winston Score measures business quality today — these growth metrics show what could matter tomorrow.

The Winston Score above measures business quality today. Growth stocks often score lower because they invest in the future rather than maximising current profits. These metrics show what matters most for evaluating that future.

Score breakdown

Every number that matters to educated investors.

Each metric is explained in plain language so you know exactly what you're looking at. Start your free trial now.

Quality

Profit per sale
Gross Margin
69.2%
Premium pricing power — 69.2% gross margin
Profit after running costs
Operating Margin
10.0%
Modest — 10.0% operating margin
Return on the money invested
ROCE
18.7%
Strong — 18.7% return on capital

ROIC between 15% and 25%. Every dollar invested in the business earns 15 to 25 cents back per year.

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Growth

Sales growth
Sales YoY
+8.1%
Steady sales growth (+8.1% YoY)
Profit growth
EPS YoY
+9.7%
Earnings growing (+9.7% YoY)

Single-digit earnings growth — steady but not exciting.

How steady the profit is
EPS Consistency
6/8 quarters
Earnings grew in most of the last 8 quarters

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Cash Flow

Profit that turns into cash
Cash Conversion
151%
Turns 151% of profit into real cash
Spare cash per sale
FCF Margin
5.2%
Thin free cash flow (5.2%)

FCF margin between 0% and 10%. Some cash from sales, but not a lot.

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Stability

What it owes vs what it owns
Debt / Equity
3.20
Heavy debt load (3.20)
Covers its interest
Interest Cover
10.96x
Comfortably covers interest (11.0x)

Interest coverage above 8. Profits cover interest many times over.

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Valuation

Price vs profit
P/E Ratio (TTM)
20.6x
Growth-priced — P/E 20.6

P/E above the market average. People are paying up for expected growth.

Cheaper or dearer next year
P/E vs Forward
+4.3
GROWING
Earnings expected to grow meaningfully — cheaper on forward P/E (20.6 → 16.3)

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Dividends

Dividend
Dividend Yield
3.24%
Moderate income — 3.24% yield

Standard yield zone for stable dividend payers. A meaningful piece of total return.

Dividend record
Dividend Growth
+7.6%
Dividend growing modestly (7.6% YoY)
Payout Ratio
59%
no trend
Pays out a modest share of profit and keeps the rest to reinvest. Room to keep paying through a weak year.

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