Darden Restaurants Senior VP & CFO Rajesh Vennam Sells 56% Of Holding

We wouldn't blame Darden Restaurants, Inc. (NYSE:DRI) shareholders if they were a little worried about the fact that Rajesh Vennam, the Senior VP & CFO recently netted about US$1.3m selling shares at an average price of US$222. Probably the most concerning element of the whole transaction is that the disposal amounted to 56% of their entire holding.

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The Last 12 Months Of Insider Transactions At Darden Restaurants

In the last twelve months, the biggest single sale by an insider was when the Independent Director, Charles Sonsteby, sold US$1.6m worth of shares at a price of US$205 per share. That means that even when the share price was below the current price of US$216, an insider wanted to cash in some shares. When an insider sells below the current price, it suggests that they considered that lower price to be fair. That makes us wonder what they think of the (higher) recent valuation. However, while insider selling is sometimes discouraging, it's only a weak signal. It is worth noting that this sale was only 27% of Charles Sonsteby's holding.

Darden Restaurants insiders didn't buy any shares over the last year. You can see a visual depiction of insider transactions (by companies and individuals) over the last 12 months, below. If you click on the chart, you can see all the individual transactions, including the share price, individual, and the date!

See our latest analysis for Darden Restaurants

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Insider Ownership

Looking at the total insider shareholdings in a company can help to inform your view of whether they are well aligned with common shareholders. Usually, the higher the insider ownership, the more likely it is that insiders will be incentivised to build the company for the long term. It appears that Darden Restaurants insiders own 0.3% of the company, worth about US$75m. We've certainly seen higher levels of insider ownership elsewhere, but these holdings are enough to suggest alignment between insiders and the other shareholders.

So What Does This Data Suggest About Darden Restaurants Insiders?

Insiders sold stock recently, but they haven't been buying. Looking to the last twelve months, our data doesn't show any insider buying. But it is good to see that Darden Restaurants is growing earnings. Insider ownership isn't particularly high, so this analysis makes us cautious about the company. So we'd only buy after careful consideration. So while it's helpful to know what insiders are doing in terms of buying or selling, it's also helpful to know the risks that a particular company is facing. To assist with this, we've discovered 3 warning signs that you should run your eye over to get a better picture of Darden Restaurants.

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For the purposes of this article, insiders are those individuals who report their transactions to the relevant regulatory body. We currently account for open market transactions and private dispositions of direct interests only, but not derivative transactions or indirect interests.

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This article by Simply Wall St is general in nature. We provide commentary based on historical data and analyst forecasts only using an unbiased methodology and our articles are not intended to be financial advice. It does not constitute a recommendation to buy or sell any stock, and does not take account of your objectives, or your financial situation. We aim to bring you long-term focused analysis driven by fundamental data. Note that our analysis may not factor in the latest price-sensitive company announcements or qualitative material. Simply Wall St has no position in any stocks mentioned.