=Darden Restaurants (DRI) reported earnings on Tue 19 Dec 2017 (b/o)

Darden Restaurants beats by $0.03, beats on revs; Q2 comps +3.1%; raises FY18 EPS, rev and comp guidance 

• Reports Q2 (Nov) earnings of $0.73 per share, excluding non-recurring items, $0.03 better thanthe Capital IQ Consensus of $0.70; revenues rose 14.6% year/year to $1.88 bln vs the $1.86 bln Capital IQ Consensus.
• Blended same-restaurant sales from Darden's legacy brands increased 3.1%. (+3.0% for Olive Garden. +3.8% for LongHorn Steakhouse).
• Same-restaurant sales for Cheddar's Scratch Kitchen were -2.0%.
• Co issues upside guidance for FY18, sees EPS of $4.45-4.53 from $4.38-4.50, excluding non-recurring items, vs. $4.44 Capital IQ Consensus Estimate; sees FY18 revs of +13% from +11.5-13.0% to ~$8.102 bln vs. $8.04 bln Capital IQ Consensus Estimate. Co sees FY18 comp guidance of approx +2% versus +1-2% prior guidance