Darden Restaurants Q3 23 – 23/03 – always a decent bellwether of the US consumer, Darden Restaurants, the owner of the well-known Olive Garden chain of restaurants is always a useful insight into the US economy. In Q2 they upgraded their expectations for the full year, expecting EPS of $7.40 to $8, assuming an annual inflation rate of 6%, and revenues of $10.3bn. In Q3 they reported revenues of $2.49bn, an increase of 9.4%, with Olive Garden, which accounts for almost 50% of revenues, seeing a 7.6% in same-store sales.
Profits came in at $1.52c a share. The restaurant chain also raised its full-year revenue guidance again, to a range of between $10.3bn and $10.45bn. Costs were also higher, rising to $2.25bn mainly due to dairy, grains, and other kinds of food stuff. Profits are expected to come in at $2.21c a share.
