Benzinga | Sep 23, 2021 01:01PM EDT

Why Darden Restaurants Stock Is Making New All-Time Highs Today

Darden Restaurants Inc (NYSE:DRI) shares are trading higher Thursday after the company announced better-than-expected first-quarter fiscal 2022 financial results and an additional $750 million share repurchase authorization.

Darden Restaurants reported quarterly earnings of $1.76 per share, which beat the estimate of $1.65 per share. The company reported quarterly revenue of $2.31 billion, which beat the estimate of $2.24 billion, representing a 51% increase year-over-year.

The company said the revenue increase was partially driven by the addition of 34 new restaurants.

Darden Restaurants expects fiscal year 2022 revenue to be in a range of $9.4 billion to $9.6 billion versus the estimate of $9.41 billion.

The company declared a quarterly cash dividend of $1.10 per share and authorized a $750 million buyback on top of the existing $500 million buyback.

"Regardless of the operating environment, our unwavering commitment to our strategy ensures we stay focused on what we do best: providing exceptional guest experiences," said Gene Lee, chairman and CEO of Darden Restaurants.

Darden Restaurants maintains a portfolio of eight restaurant chains: Olive Garden, LongHorn Steakhouse, Cheddar's Scratch Kitchen, Yard House, The Capital Grille, Seasons 52, Eddie V's and Bahama Breeze.

DRI Price Action: Darden Restaurants is making new all-time highs in trading today.

The stock was up 6.4% at $159.94 at time of publication.

Photo: Mike Mozart from Flickr.