Darden's Sales Fell 21% in the First Few Days of Widespread Social Distancing

Darden Restaurants (NYSE: DRI) recently reported fiscal third-quarter earnings results that showed solid sales and profit trends through late February. But those wins were overshadowed by the impact of COVID-19, which really began to hurt the business in early March. The related customer traffic slump threatens major financial strain for the owner of the Olive Garden and LongHorn Steakhouse brands.

The company's latest earnings report detailed a few of those challenges while citing the aggressive initiatives underway to preserve cash through the restaurant industry's historic disruption.

Let's take a closer look.

Source Fool.com