Darden Q3 Earnings Miss Estimates, Same-Store Sales Rise Y/Y

Darden Restaurants, Inc. DRI reported third-quarter fiscal 2025 results, with earnings and revenues missing the Zacks Consensus Estimate. The top and bottom lines increased on a year-over-year basis.Stay up-to-date with all quarterly releases: See Zacks Earnings Calendar.DRI’s Fiscal Q3 Earnings & RevenuesDuring the fiscal third quarter, Darden reported adjusted earnings per share (EPS) of $2.80, missing the Zacks Consensus Estimate of $2.81. In the prior-year quarter, DRI reported an adjusted EPS of $2.62.Total sales during the quarter came in at $3.15 billion, missing the consensus mark of $3.2 billion. Sales inched up 6.2% from the prior-year quarter’s level. The upside was backed by a blended same-restaurant sales increase of 0.7%. Also, contributions from 103 Chuy's restaurants and 40 net new restaurants added to the positives.Darden Restaurants, Inc. Price, Consensus and EPS Surprise Darden Restaurants, Inc. price-consensus-eps-surprise-chart | Darden Restaurants, Inc. QuoteSales by SegmentsDarden reports business under four segments — Olive Garden, LongHorn Steakhouse, Fine Dining, including The Capital Grille and Eddie V's and Other Business.During the fiscal third quarter, sales at Olive Garden increased 1.5% year over year to $1.33 billion. Our estimate for the metric was $1.38 billion. Comps in the segment increased 0.6% year over year compared with a 2% rise reported in the previous quarter.At LongHorn Steakhouse, sales were up 5.1% year over year to $768.1 million. Our estimate for the metric was $781.6 million. Comps in the segment rose 2.6% year over year compared with 7.5% growth reported in the previous quarter.Sales in Fine Dining increased 3.3% year over year to $385.3 million. Our estimate for the metric was $394.1 million. Comps in the segment fell 0.8% year over year compared with a 5.8% drop reported in the previous quarter.Sales in Other Business increased 20.2% year over year to $674.3 million. Our estimate for the metric was $617.9 million. Comps in the Other Business fell 0.4% year over year against a 0.7% rise reported in the previous quarter.DRI’s Q3 Operating HighlightsIn the fiscal third quarter, total operating costs and expenses inched up 5.9% year over year to $2.74 billion. The upside was primarily due to increased restaurant expenses, labor costs and marketing expenses. The figure compares to our projection of $2.77 billion.DRI’s Balance SheetAs of Feb. 23, 2025, cash and cash equivalents came in at $224.2 million compared with $194.8 million as of May 26.During the fiscal third quarter, inventories came in at $324.6 million compared with $318 million reported in the previous quarter. As of Feb. 23, 2025, long-term debt was $2.12 billion compared with $1.37 million as of May 26.During the fiscal third quarter, Darden’s board of directors repurchased approximately 0.3 million shares of its common stock, worth approximately $53 million. As of the fiscal third quarter, the company stated availability of approximately $548 million under the $1 billion repurchase authorization.Darden’s Fiscal 2025 OutlookFor the fiscal 2025, the company expects total sales to be approximately $12.1 billion. Same-restaurant sales growth in the fiscal 2025 is anticipated to be 1.5% year over year. Adjusted diluted EPS from continuing operations is anticipated in the band of $9.45-$9.52.The company expects to open 50-55 net new restaurants and projects a total capital spending of approximately $650 million in fiscal 2025.DRI’s Zacks Rank & Key PicksDarden currently carries a Zacks Rank #3 (Hold).Some better-ranked stocks in the Zacks Retail-Wholesale sector have been discussed below.BJ's Restaurants, Inc. BJRI currently sports a Zacks Rank #1 (Strong Buy). You can see the complete list of today’s Zacks Rank #1 stocks here.BJRI has a trailing four-quarter earnings surprise of negative 84.7%, on average. The stock has gained 1.8% in the past six months. The Zacks Consensus Estimate for BJRI’s 2025 sales and EPS indicates growth of 3.3% and 17.7%, respectively, from the year-ago period’s levels.Brinker International, Inc. EAT presently flaunts a Zacks Rank of 1. EAT has a trailing four-quarter earnings surprise of 24.7%, on average. The stock has surged 81.6% in the past six months.The consensus estimate for EAT’s 2025 sales and EPS indicates growth of 18.7% and 98.8%, respectively, from the year-ago period’s levels.Portillo's Inc. PTLO currently sports a Zacks Rank of 1. PTLO has a trailing four-quarter earnings surprise of 62.7%, on average. The stock has declined 5.9% in the past six months.The Zacks Consensus Estimate for PTLO’s fiscal 2026 sales indicates a rise of 11.7% from the year-ago period’s levels.Zacks Names #1 Semiconductor StockIt's only 1/9,000th the size of NVIDIA which skyrocketed more than +800% since we recommended it. NVIDIA is still strong, but our new top chip stock has much more room to boom.With strong earnings growth and an expanding customer base, it's positioned to feed the rampant demand for Artificial Intelligence, Machine Learning, and Internet of Things. Global semiconductor manufacturing is projected to explode from $452 billion in 2021 to $803 billion by 2028.See This Stock Now for Free >>Want the latest recommendations from Zacks Investment Research? Today, you can download 7 Best Stocks for the Next 30 Days. Click to get this free report BJ's Restaurants, Inc. (BJRI): Free Stock Analysis Report Darden Restaurants, Inc. (DRI): Free Stock Analysis Report Brinker International, Inc. (EAT): Free Stock Analysis Report Portillo's Inc. (PTLO): Free Stock Analysis ReportThis article originally published on Zacks Investment Research (zacks.com).Zacks Investment ResearchWeiter zum vollständigen Artikel bei Zacks Weiter zum vollständigen Artikel bei Zacks