An Olive Backyard restaurant in Milpitas, California, US, on Tuesday, Dec. 16, 2025.
David Paul Morris | Bloomberg | Getty Photographs
Darden Eating places on Thursday reported blended quarterly outcomes as same-store gross sales progress on the firm’s fine-dining eating places and Olive Backyard fell wanting expectations.
The corporate’s forecast for its fiscal 2027 earnings and income additionally got here on the decrease finish of Wall Avenue’s projections.
Shares of the corporate fell greater than 1% in morning buying and selling.
Here is what the corporate reported for its fiscal fourth quarter ended Could 31 in contrast with what Wall Avenue was anticipating, based mostly on a survey of analysts by LSEG:
- Earnings per share: $3.66 adjusted vs. $3.63 anticipated
- Income: $3.72 billion vs. $3.73 billion anticipated
Darden reported web revenue of $404.9 million, or $3.51 per share, up from $303.8 million, or $2.58 per share, a yr earlier.
Excluding prices of restaurant closures and different gadgets, the corporate earned $3.66 per share.
Web gross sales climbed 13.7% to $3.72 billion, boosted by the inclusion of an additional week in the course of the fiscal yr.
Throughout all of Darden’s eating places, same-store gross sales rose 4.6%, topping expectations of 4.1% progress based mostly on StreetAccount estimates.
“Client spending stays fairly resilient total,” Darden CEO Rick Cardenas mentioned on the corporate’s earnings convention name. “The temper with shoppers remains to be just a little cautious, however as we have mentioned a few occasions earlier than, the weaker client sentiment hasn’t essentially translated into decreased spending.”
He added that a few of Darden’s casual-dining manufacturers noticed a rise in visits from all revenue cohorts, maybe lifted by tax refunds. Visitors from shoppers below the age of 35 weakened barely, nevertheless.
LongHorn Steakhouse led the portfolio with same-store gross sales progress of 9.5%, beating StreetAccount projections of seven.1%. The chain has overtaken Olive Backyard to grow to be Darden’s high performer, though it nonetheless accounts for much less of the corporate’s total gross sales.
The fourth quarter marked the annual return of LongHorn’s lamb chops. Darden executives mentioned the chain purchased extra lamb than the earlier yr, but offered out in half the time.
For its half, Olive Backyard noticed same-store gross sales develop 2.4% within the quarter, lacking expectations of three.2% progress.
Darden’s fine-dining phase reported same-store gross sales progress of 1.9%, falling wanting StreetAccount estimates of three.1%. The division consists of The Capital Grille and Ruth’s Chris.
The corporate’s “different enterprise” phase noticed same-store gross sales rise 4.6%, increased than the three% projected by analysts. The division features a handful of smaller restaurant chains, like Yard Home and Chuy’s.
Looking forward to the subsequent fiscal yr, Darden is projecting whole gross sales of $13.60 billion to $13.75 billion and web earnings per share from persevering with operations in a spread of $11.10 to $11.35. Wall Avenue is anticipating the corporate to report fiscal 2027 income of $13.72 billion and earnings per share of $11.40.
“We’re not anticipating any materials change to business efficiency,” Darden CFO Raj Vennam mentioned on the decision.
Darden can also be forecasting that it’s going to report same-store gross sales progress of two.5% to three.5% for fiscal 2027 and open between 75 and 80 new places. Furthermore, 11 of its Bahama Breeze eating places shall be transformed into places for its different manufacturers; Darden introduced in February that it was winding down the struggling Caribbean-inspired chain.
