Papa John’s International (NASDAQ:PZZA) Trading Down 6.7%

Papa John’s International, Inc. (NASDAQ:PZZA)’s stock price dropped 6.7% during mid-day trading on Thursday . The company traded as low as $52.78 and last traded at $53.29. Approximately 361,001 shares changed hands during trading, a decline of 54% from the average daily volume of 787,863 shares. The stock had previously closed at $57.13.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several analysts recently issued reports on PZZA shares. BMO Capital Markets lowered their price target on Papa John’s International from $90.00 to $80.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a report on Friday, March 22nd. Stephens reiterated an “overweight” rating and set a $75.00 target price on shares of Papa John’s International in a report on Thursday. StockNews.com lowered Papa John’s International from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Saturday, March 9th. Stifel Nicolaus raised shares of Papa John’s International from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating and lowered their price objective for the company from $65.00 to $60.00 in a research report on Monday, April 22nd. Finally, Benchmark reduced their target price on shares of Papa John’s International from $95.00 to $87.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, March 22nd. Six analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and six have given a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $81.60.

Papa John’s International Stock Performance

The business’s 50 day moving average price is $65.54 and its 200-day moving average price is $69.11. The firm has a market cap of $1.78 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 21.77, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.58 and a beta of 1.16.

Papa John’s International (NASDAQ:PZZA) last released its earnings results on Thursday, February 29th. The company reported $0.91 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.73 by $0.18. Papa John’s International had a negative return on equity of 19.46% and a net margin of 3.84%. The company had revenue of $571.32 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $578.15 million. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $0.71 EPS. Papa John’s International’s quarterly revenue was up 8.6% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, analysts forecast that Papa John’s International, Inc. will post 2.62 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Papa John’s International Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, May 31st. Shareholders of record on Monday, May 20th will be issued a $0.46 dividend. This represents a $1.84 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.41%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, May 17th. Papa John’s International’s dividend payout ratio is presently 74.80%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Papa John’s International

In related news, Director Laurette T. Koellner sold 2,886 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Thursday, March 7th. The shares were sold at an average price of $70.21, for a total transaction of $202,626.06. Following the sale, the director now owns 18,804 shares in the company, valued at $1,320,228.84. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. 0.80% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. CWM LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Papa John’s International by 23.5% during the fourth quarter. CWM LLC now owns 819 shares of the company’s stock valued at $62,000 after acquiring an additional 156 shares during the period. Texas Yale Capital Corp. lifted its position in Papa John’s International by 5.6% in the 1st quarter. Texas Yale Capital Corp. now owns 4,562 shares of the company’s stock valued at $304,000 after purchasing an additional 240 shares during the last quarter. Inspire Investing LLC boosted its stake in Papa John’s International by 5.8% during the 3rd quarter. Inspire Investing LLC now owns 4,498 shares of the company’s stock valued at $307,000 after purchasing an additional 248 shares during the period. SeaCrest Wealth Management LLC grew its position in Papa John’s International by 6.7% in the 1st quarter. SeaCrest Wealth Management LLC now owns 3,976 shares of the company’s stock worth $265,000 after purchasing an additional 250 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Alliance Wealth Advisors LLC UT grew its position in Papa John’s International by 6.9% in the 3rd quarter. Alliance Wealth Advisors LLC UT now owns 3,994 shares of the company’s stock worth $272,000 after purchasing an additional 258 shares during the last quarter.

About Papa John’s International

Papa John's International, Inc operates and franchises pizza delivery and carryout restaurants under the Papa John's trademark in the United States and internationally. The company operates through four segments: Domestic Company-Owned Restaurants, North America Commissaries, North America Franchising, and International Operations.