DRI Fell 13% In A Week. What To Do Now?
Darden Restaurants (DRI) stock is down 12.7% in 5 trading days. The stock looks fairly priced at the moment, though history suggests you may benefit from buying dips. Consider the following data:
- Size: A $22 Bil company with $12 Bil in revenue currently trading at $185.21.
- Fundamentals: Last 12 month revenue growth of 6.0% and operating margin of 11.9%.
- Liquidity: Has Debt to Equity ratio of 0.29 and Cash to Assets ratio of 0.02
- Valuation: Currently trading at P/E multiple of 20.6 and P/EBIT multiple of 15.9
- Has one instance since 2010 where it dipped >30% in < 30 days and subsequently returned 81% within a year. See DRI Dip Buy Analysis.
While we like to buy dips if the fundamentals check out – for DRI, see Buy or Sell DRI Stock – we are wary of falling knives. Specifically, it is worth trying to answer if things get really bad, and DRI drops another 20-30% to $129.65 levels, will we be able to hold on to the stock? What is the worst case scenario? We call it downturn resilience.
Below is a deep dive into Darden Restaurants (DRI) downturn resilience – specifically, its performance vs the market during past crises? Turns out, the stock saw an impact slightly better than the S&P 500 index during various economic downturns. We assess this based on both (a) how much the stock fell and, (b) how quickly it recovered.
Below are the details, but before that, as a quick background: DRI provides full-service restaurant operations across the United States and Canada, delivering dining experiences through multiple subsidiary brands since 1968.
- The Next Big Rally in Ford Motor Stock Could Start Like This
- The Risk Factors to Watch Out For in NVIDIA Stock
- Intuitive Surgical Stock Now 16% Cheaper, Time To Buy
- AT&T Stock Pays Out $85 Bil – Investors Take Note
- Intel Stock Pays Out $92 Bil – Investors Take Note
- Comcast Stock Capital Return Hits $44 Bil
2022 Inflation Shock
- DRI stock fell 30.0% from a high of $159.81 on 27 September 2021 to $111.84 on 16 June 2022 vs. a peak-to-trough decline of 25.4% for the S&P 500.
- However, the stock fully recovered to its pre-Crisis peak by 18 May 2023
- Since then, the stock increased to a high of $225.78 on 22 June 2025 , and currently trades at $185.21
| DRI | S&P 500 | |
|---|---|---|
| % Change from Pre-Recession Peak | -30.0% | -25.4% |
| Time to Full Recovery | 336 days | 464 days |
2020 Covid Pandemic
- DRI stock fell 72.1% from a high of $122.45 on 12 February 2020 to $34.16 on 18 March 2020 vs. a peak-to-trough decline of 33.9% for the S&P 500.
- However, the stock fully recovered to its pre-Crisis peak by 7 January 2021
| DRI | S&P 500 | |
|---|---|---|
| % Change from Pre-Recession Peak | -72.1% | -33.9% |
| Time to Full Recovery | 295 days | 148 days |
2018 Correction
- DRI stock fell 19.0% from a high of $119.38 on 11 September 2018 to $96.71 on 24 December 2018 vs. a peak-to-trough decline of 19.8% for the S&P 500.
- However, the stock fully recovered to its pre-Crisis peak by 28 March 2019
| DRI | S&P 500 | |
|---|---|---|
| % Change from Pre-Recession Peak | -19.0% | -19.8% |
| Time to Full Recovery | 94 days | 120 days |
2008 Global Financial Crisis
- DRI stock fell 71.2% from a high of $42.00 on 18 June 2007 to $12.08 on 20 November 2008 vs. a peak-to-trough decline of 56.8% for the S&P 500.
- However, the stock fully recovered to its pre-Crisis peak by 14 April 2010
| DRI | S&P 500 | |
|---|---|---|
| % Change from Pre-Recession Peak | -71.2% | -56.8% |
| Time to Full Recovery | 510 days | 1480 days |
Worried that DRI could fall much more? You could take a look at the Trefis High Quality (HQ) Portfolio, with a collection of 30 stocks, has a track record of comfortably outperforming its benchmark that includes all 3 – the S&P 500, S&P mid-cap, and Russell 2000 indices. Why is that? As a group, HQ Portfolio stocks provided better returns with less risk versus the benchmark index; less of a roller-coaster ride, as evident in HQ Portfolio performance metrics.