Darden (DRI) Group President Martin Melvin Exercises Awards, Withholds Shares

What Happened

• Martin Melvin, Group President of Darden Restaurants (DRI), converted/ exercised equity awards into 10,582 shares (no exercise price recorded) on July 26–27, 2026 and had 4,165 shares withheld/ disposed to cover tax withholding at $196.31 per share, totaling approximately $817,632. This was a conversion/vesting event with share withholding for tax, not an open-market sale for cash; net shares retained after withholding: 6,417.

Key Details

• Transaction dates: July 26, 2026 (conversions of 2,325 and 2,257 shares; withholdings of 889 and 915 shares) and July 27, 2026 (conversion of 6,000 shares; withholding of 2,361 shares).
• Prices recorded: conversions/exercises at $0.00 (M code); tax-withholding disposals at $196.31 per share (F code).
• Withheld/disposed shares and amounts: 889 shares = $174,520; 915 shares = $179,624; 2,361 shares = $463,488; total withheld ≈ $817,632.
• Net shares retained from this event: 10,582 acquired − 4,165 withheld = 6,417 shares.
• Footnotes: F1/F3 indicate performance RSUs and restricted stock units convert one-for-one into common stock; F4/F5 note vesting schedules (grants vest in two equal annual installments beginning July 26, 2026 and July 27, 2025). F2 references ESPP/dividend reinvestment details (as applicable).
• Filing: Report filed 2026-07-29 reporting transactions on 2026-07-26/27; appears to be a routine, timely filing (no late filing flag shown).

Context

• This was a standard conversion/vesting of restricted/performance units followed by share withholding to satisfy tax obligations (commonly called "sell-to-cover" or tax withholding). Such transactions are routine for vested equity and do not necessarily indicate a change in insider sentiment; they differ from open-market sales meant to liquidate holdings. Codes: M = exercise/conversion of derivative, F = payment of exercise price or tax liability.