Darden Restaurants在盈利后上涨11%，Uber-Olive Garden宣布合作伙伴关系

Darden Restaurants (NYSE:DRI) reported sales increased by 1.0% in FQ1 to $2.8 billion. Same-restaurant sales were down 2.9% for the Olive Garden chain for the quarter that ended on August 25 and fell 6.0% for the company's fine dining chains, which include Ruth's Chris and Capital Grille. The LongHorn Steakhouse chain saw a 3.7% increase in same-restaurant sales during the quarter. Darden Restaurants (DRI) saw a significant step-down in traffic during July, but sales trends were noted to have improved since then.

Segment profit was down at Olive Garden compared to a year ago ($249 million vs. $262.3 million), but higher at LongHorn Steakhouse ($127.6 million vs. $117.4 million). EPS came in at $1.75 vs. $1.83 consensus and $1.61 a year ago.

"We operate in a very dynamic, competitive industry and we have proven we can successfully navigate challenging environments due to our strategy," stated Darden President & CEO Rick Cardenas. "While we fell short of our expectations for the first quarter, I firmly believe in the strength of our business. I am confident in the actions all our brand teams are taking to address their guests' needs, which do not compromise the long-term health of our business for short-term benefits," he added.

During FQ1, the restaurant company repurchased approximately 1.2 million shares of its stock for a total of $172 million. As of the end of FQ1, DRI had $743 million remaining under the current $1 billion repurchase authorization.

Darden Restaurants (DRI) ended the quarter with 2,040 locations operating, vs. 1,998 at the end of FQ1 a year ago.

In terms of guidance, Darden Restaurants (DRI) sees FY25 EPS of $9.40 to $9.60 (midpoint $9.50) vs. $9.48 consensus.

Separate from the earnings news, Darden Restaurants (DRI) announced that it entered into an exclusive multi-year delivery partnership with Uber Technologies (UBER) set to begin with Olive Garden in late 2024.

Shares of Darden Restaurants (DRI) jumped 11.15% in premarket trading following the earnings report and Uber (UBER) news.