8 Stocks in Focus Under Jim Cramer’s Game Plan

3. Darden Restaurants, Inc. (NYSE:DRI)

Number of Hedge Fund Holders: 36

While Cramer acknowledged that restaurant stocks have been acting oddly recently, he bet that Darden Restaurants, Inc. (NYSE:DRI) would report “good numbers”.

“Thursday’s abnormally huge. In the morning, we have Darden, the parent of Olive Garden. The restaurant cohort is still all over the map. I see a lot to like about the ones that offer the customers a great value and that’s why I’m betting we’ll see good numbers from Darden.”

Darden (NYSE:DRI) owns and manages a network of full-service restaurants across the U.S. and Canada, including well-known brands like Olive Garden and LongHorn Steakhouse. In December 2024, before the company reported its earnings, Cramer stated:

“Thursday morning: Well, Darden tells us how it’s doing and I gotta tell you, this one’s still being driven by Olive Garden. I think the market’s actually moved away from the formerly important restaurant chain. Instead, it’s focused on the results of Texas Roadhouse and Brinker, both of which offer great value and are being rewarded with tremendous numbers and then much higher stock prices.

I wanna find out if Darden gets the consumers pushing back against high prices. They have to tell us what they’re doing to entice these people who seem to be going elsewhere for casual dining, pretty much for people who want to spend no more than $11 per dinner.”