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Darden's shares, which have risen nearly 60 percent since Smith
took over as chairman in October 2014, were up 1 percent at
$68.00 in premarket trading on Tuesday.
"I am able to move on to other projects at this time because of
the outstanding chemistry and capabilities of both the board and
management," Smith said.
Starboard launched a proxy fight last month to overthrow Yahoo
Inc's board, including Chief Executive Marissa Mayer who has
struggled to turn around the company.
The activist investor is also urging department store chain
Macy's Inc to enter into joint ventures for its stores,
including the flagship Herald Square store in New York.
Starboard had launched a public battle with Darden's management
in 2014, including a 300-slide presentation outlining plans for
Darden to sell its real estate, franchise its restaurants, spin
off some chains and fix its flagship Olive Garden chain.
Smith will be replaced as chairman by Charles Sonsteby, an
independent director on Darden's board and CFO of arts and
crafts retailer Michaels Cos Inc.
Separately, Darden reported a 6.7 percent increase in
third-quarter sales to $1.85 billion, beating the average
analyst estimate of $1.84 billion.
(Reporting by Yashaswini Swamynathan in Bengaluru; Editing by
Saumyadeb Chakrabarty)
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