Darden Restaurants Inc

A sign hangs on the front of an Olive Garden restaurant on June 22, 2023 in Chicago, Illinois.Scott Olsen | Getty ImagesDarden Restaurants on Thursday reported mixed quarterly results as the Olive Garden owner's same-store sales shrank for the first time since the pandemic.Shares of the company fell more than 4% in premarket trading.Here's what the company reported compared with what Wall Street was expecting, based on a survey of analysts by LSEG, formerly known as Refinitiv:Earnings per share: $2.62 adjusted, meeting…

A coalition of unions is laying out its case against Starbucks ahead of a proxy fight at its annual meeting in March, arguing the coffee giant has implemented a "flawed human capital management strategy" in response to a yearslong union movement.The Strategic Organizing Center claims the situation has put the company at reputational risk, diminishing shareholder returns and isolating customers, based on polling conducted for a shareholder presentation. The coalition is pushing to replace three current Starbucks board…

An Olive Garden restaurant in Fremont, California, US, on Thursday, Sept. 14, 2023. Darden Restaurants Inc. is scheduled to release earnings figures on September 21.Bloomberg | Getty ImagesDarden Restaurants on Friday reported quarterly earnings that beat expectations and raised its annual guidance, helped by sales growth at chains like Olive Garden and LongHorn Steakhouse.Here's what the company reported for its fiscal second quarter ending Nov. 26 compared with what Wall Street was expecting, based on a survey of…

A shopper goes through shirts in the kids section at Old Navy in Denver, Colorado.Brent Lewis | Denver Post | Getty ImagesBy striking down student debt forgiveness Friday, the U.S. Supreme Court not only added a hefty expense back into millions of Americans' budgets. It also created the latest challenge for retailers already struggling to predict how consumers may spend in the coming months.The court's decision squashed President Joe Biden's plan to forgive up to $20,000 per borrower in federal student loan debt. Student…

Customers enter an Olive Garden restaurant in Pittsburg, California, US, on Friday, Dec. 9, 2022. David Paul Morris | Bloomberg | Getty ImagesDarden Restaurants on Thursday reported quarterly earnings that topped Wall Street's expectations, fueled by strong LongHorn Steakhouse sales.But investors were disappointed by the company's forecast for fiscal 2024. Darden is anticipating adjusted earnings per share from continuing operations of $8.55 to $8.85, but analysts surveyed by Refinitiv were expecting earnings of $8.79 per…

Customers patronize an open Panera Bread location in the Walt Whitman Mall on March 26, 2020 in Huntington Station, New York.Bruce Bennett | Getty ImagesPanera Bread's parent company is switching up its leadership as it prepares to go public again.The announcement, made Tuesday, confirms that the restaurant company is interested in an initial public offering after calling off a deal last year with Danny Meyer's SPAC to go public again.The arrangement would have exchanged shares of USHG Acquisition for the sandwich chain's…

A Ruth's Chris Steak House in Miami, May 3, 2023.Joe Raedle | Getty Images News | Getty ImagesOlive Garden owner Darden Restaurants is betting on fine dining with its $715 million acquisition of Ruth's Chris Steak House.The company's announcement on Wednesday that it's adding another fine-dining restaurant to its portfolio surprised some. TD Cowen analyst Andrew Charles wrote in a note to clients he was expecting the company to target another casual-dining chain, such as First Watch Restaurant Group.But Darden executives…

A pedestrian wearing a protective mask walks past a Ruth's Chris restaurant in Washington, D.C., on Monday, April 20, 2020.Andrew Harrer | Bloomberg via Getty ImagesDarden Restaurants said Wednesday it is buying Ruth's Hospitality Group, the parent company of Ruth's Chris Steak House, for $715 million.The deal values Ruth's at $21.50 per share in an all-cash transaction. The steakhouse has more than 150 locations worldwide and generated $505.9 million in revenue in 2022.Ruth's shares spiked nearly 34% in premarket…

People sit outdoors at the Petite Crevette Restaurant on June 05, 2021 in the Brooklyn borough of New York City.Robert Nickelsberg | Getty ImagesFor the first time since inflation began accelerating in mid-2021, restaurant prices outpaced grocery prices on a 12-month basis, according to the Labor Department.It's a blow to the restaurant industry, which has already seen lagging traffic numbers as budget-conscious consumers cut back. For months, restaurant CEOs like Cheesecake Factory's Matthew Clark and Wendy's Todd…

Customers enter an Olive Garden restaurant in Pittsburg, California, US, on Friday, Dec. 9, 2022.David Paul Morris | Bloomberg | Getty ImagesDarden Restaurants on Thursday raised its revenue outlook for fiscal 2023 for the second consecutive quarter after reporting results that showed growth across the board.For its 2023, Darden now expects sales of $10.45 billion to $10.5 billion, up from its prior range of $10.3 billion to $10.45 billion.Darden CEO Rick Cardenas credited the quarter's strong sales growth to its strategy…