Darden Restaurants (DRI), which owns the Olive Garden and LongHorn Steakhouse chains,
has issued financial results that missed Wall Street targets across the board.
The Florida-based company reported earnings per share (EPS) of $1.75 U.S., which fell short of consensus estimates that called for $1.83 U.S.
Revenue of $2.76 billion U.S. was below the $2.80 billion U.S. expected on Wall Street.
The company blamed the disappointing results on a decline in sales at its Olive Garden restaurant chain and its fine dining restaurants such as Ruth’s Chris Steak House.
Overall sales at the company rose 1% in this year’s second quarter from a year ago. However, same-store sales declined 1.1% year over year.
Olive Garden’s same-store sales fell 2.9% from a year earlier, while the fine-dining segment that also includes The Capital Grille chain reported same-store sales fell 6%.
LongHorn Steakhouse was the only restaurant chain to report same-store sales growth in the quarter with a 3.7% year-over-year advance.
Looking ahead, Darden’s management team reiterated their full-year forecast, saying they expect earnings of $9.40 U.S. to $9.60 U.S. and sales of $11.80 billion U.S. to $11.90 billion U.S. this year.
The stock of Darden’s Restaurants has increased 6% over the last 12 months and currently trades at $159.14 U.S. per share.
