DRI News & Events

Darden Restaurants has completed its exploration of strategic alternatives for Bahama Breeze. The company has now determined that it will permanently close 14 Bahama Breeze restaurants and plans to convert the remaining 14 locations into another Darden brand. The company does not expect these actions to have a material impact on its financial results. The 14 restaurants designated for permanent closure are expected to continue operating through April 5. The company anticipates converting the remaining 14 locations over the next 12-18 months. They are expected to continue to operate until any temporary closures are needed for the conversion. Going forward, the primary focus will continue to be on supporting team members, including placing as many as possible in roles within the Darden portfolio.

The major averages had a mixed day, with pressure in tech fueled by Intel's sharp slide following a weak outlook from the chipmaker. The mixed Friday capped off a volatile week that reflected shifting investor sentiment around geopolitics, earnings, and economic data.Looking to commodities, gold continues to reach record highs approaching the $5,000 threshold, while the spot silver price broke past the $100 per ounce mark for the first time.Get caught up quickly on the top news and calls moving stocks with these five Top Five lists.1. STOCK NEWS:TikTok is forming awith Oracleto comply with President Trump's executive orderIntelreported better-than-expected Q4 results but provided aCapital Onereportedand agreed to acquire Brex for $5.15BTech firms have been told by China to begin preparing orders for Nvidia'sH200 AI chips,Deltaextended its travel waiver ahead of extreme winter weather this weekend, with additional2. WALL STREET CALLS:Starbucksto Outperform from Market Perform at William BlairMeliusDardento Buy from Hold on value disciplineProcter & Gambleto Overweight from Neutral at JPMorganLi Autoto Hold from Buy at JefferiesTrade Deskto Market Perform from Outperform at Citizens3. AROUND THE WEB:Databricks has landed $1.8B in fresh debt ahead of its IPO, CNBC reportsAlphabet'sGoogle will invest in Sakana AI and form a strategic partnership, Nikkei Asia reportsNetflixco-CEO Greg Peters said the company is on track to win the backing of Warner Bros.shareholders for its $82.7B offer for the company, FT reportsCitigroupplans to lay off more employees in March following a round of about 1,000 job cuts this month, Reuters saysA batch of technology companies, including C3 AI, Bill Holdings, GitLab, and Datadog, appear to be candidates to attract buyout offers, Barron's says4. MOVERS:Life360higher afterEricssonincreases in New York afterand announcing a proposed raise to its dividendFortinetgains after TD Cowenthe stock to BuyStreamexfalls after delivering a prepayment notice forBausch Healthlower in New York after announcing its Phase 3 RED-C program5. EARNINGS/GUIDANCEBooz Allenand narrowed its guidance for FY26Webster Financial, with EPS and revenue beating consensusLa Rosa HoldingsreportedFirst Citizens, with CEO Frank Holding, Jr. commenting, "We delivered solid return metrics in the fourth quarter"SLB, with EPS and revenue beating consensusINDEXES:The Dow fell 285.30, or 0.58%, to 49,098.71, the Nasdaq gained 65.22, or 0.28%, to 23,501.24, and the S&P 500 advanced 2.26, or 0.033%, to 6,915.61.