Sterne Agee Reiterates Buy Rating on Darden Restaurants, Inc. (NYSE:

). After the close on December 20th, DRI announced FY2Q results that were in-line with consensus expectations but a penny below their projection, Sterne Agee reports. On a same-store sales (

) basis, blended comps were +1.4%, which were slightly short of the Sterne Agee projection of +2.2%, and slightly lower SSS at Olive Garden and Red Lobster during the month of September was the primary reason for the shortfall.