Darden Restaurants (NYSE:DRI) Ticks All The Boxes When It Comes To Earnings Growth

Investors are often guided by the idea of discovering 'the next big thing', even if that means buying 'story stocks' without any revenue, let alone profit. Sometimes these stories can cloud the minds of investors, leading them to invest with their emotions rather than on the merit of good company fundamentals. A loss-making company is yet to prove itself with profit, and eventually the inflow of external capital may dry up.

Despite being in the age of tech-stock blue-sky investing, many investors still adopt a more traditional strategy; buying shares in profitable companies like Darden Restaurants (NYSE:DRI). Now this is not to say that the company presents the best investment opportunity around, but profitability is a key component to success in business.

Check out our latest analysis for Darden Restaurants

How Fast Is Darden Restaurants Growing?

If you believe that markets are even vaguely efficient, then over the long term you'd expect a company's share price to follow its earnings per share (EPS) outcomes. Therefore, there are plenty of investors who like to buy shares in companies that are growing EPS. We can see that in the last three years Darden Restaurants grew its EPS by 12% per year. That's a good rate of growth, if it can be sustained.

Top-line growth is a great indicator that growth is sustainable, and combined with a high earnings before interest and taxation (EBIT) margin, it's a great way for a company to maintain a competitive advantage in the market. EBIT margins for Darden Restaurants remained fairly unchanged over the last year, however the company should be pleased to report its revenue growth for the period of 6.0% to US$11b. That's a real positive.

You can take a look at the company's revenue and earnings growth trend, in the chart below. To see the actual numbers, click on the chart.

Of course the knack is to find stocks that have their best days in the future, not in the past. You could base your opinion on past performance, of course, but you may also want to check this interactive graph of professional analyst EPS forecasts for Darden Restaurants.

Are Darden Restaurants Insiders Aligned With All Shareholders?

Owing to the size of Darden Restaurants, we wouldn't expect insiders to hold a significant proportion of the company. But we do take comfort from the fact that they are investors in the company. With a whopping US$88m worth of shares as a group, insiders have plenty riding on the company's success. This would indicate that the goals of shareholders and management are one and the same.

Does Darden Restaurants Deserve A Spot On Your Watchlist?

One positive for Darden Restaurants is that it is growing EPS. That's nice to see. To add an extra spark to the fire, significant insider ownership in the company is another highlight. The combination definitely favoured by investors so consider keeping the company on a watchlist. You should always think about risks though. Case in point, we've spotted 3 warning signs for Darden Restaurants you should be aware of.

There's always the possibility of doing well buying stocks that are not growing earnings and do not have insiders buying shares. But for those who consider these important metrics, we encourage you to check out companies that do have those features. You can access a tailored list of companies which have demonstrated growth backed by significant insider holdings.

Please note the insider transactions discussed in this article refer to reportable transactions in the relevant jurisdiction.

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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.