Papa Johns International’s (PZZA) Overweight Rating Reaffirmed at Stephens

Stephens restated their overweight rating on shares of Papa Johns International (NASDAQ:PZZA) in a research report sent to investors on Thursday, Benzinga reports. They currently have a $60.00 price target on the stock.

Other equities research analysts also recently issued research reports about the company. BMO Capital Markets dropped their price objective on Papa Johns International from $80.00 to $75.00 and set an outperform rating for the company in a report on Friday, May 10th. Stifel Nicolaus dropped their price objective on Papa Johns International from $55.00 to $45.00 and set a hold rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, June 26th. Bank of America dropped their price objective on Papa Johns International from $78.00 to $69.00 and set a buy rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, July 17th. Loop Capital lowered their price target on Papa Johns International from $97.00 to $90.00 and set a buy rating for the company in a report on Friday, May 10th. Finally, Benchmark lowered their price target on Papa Johns International from $87.00 to $75.00 and set a buy rating for the company in a report on Friday, May 10th. Seven analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seven have given a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of Moderate Buy and a consensus target price of $58.82.

Papa Johns International Price Performance

Shares of PZZA stock traded up $1.63 on Thursday, reaching $44.86. 1,476,642 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 997,047. The stock has a market cap of $1.48 billion, a PE ratio of 19.94, a P/E/G ratio of 1.83 and a beta of 1.16. Papa Johns International has a one year low of $39.90 and a one year high of $83.51. The stock has a 50 day moving average price of $44.84 and a 200 day moving average price of $58.00.

Papa Johns International (NASDAQ:PZZA) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, August 8th. The company reported $0.61 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.51 by $0.10. The business had revenue of $507.89 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $520.13 million. Papa Johns International had a negative return on equity of 19.46% and a net margin of 3.50%. The firm’s revenue was down 1.3% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company posted $0.59 earnings per share. On average, research analysts expect that Papa Johns International will post 2.37 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Papa Johns International Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, August 30th. Investors of record on Monday, August 19th will be given a dividend of $0.46 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, August 19th. This represents a $1.84 annualized dividend and a yield of 4.10%. Papa Johns International’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 81.78%.

Insider Activity at Papa Johns International

In related news, CEO Ravi Thanawala purchased 1,900 shares of Papa Johns International stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, May 14th. The stock was purchased at an average cost of $52.41 per share, with a total value of $99,579.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 38,920 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,039,797.20. The purchase was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Insiders own 8.90% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of Papa Johns International

Hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the business. Cowen AND Company LLC bought a new position in shares of Papa Johns International during the second quarter worth approximately $32,736,000. Norges Bank bought a new position in shares of Papa Johns International during the fourth quarter worth approximately $29,204,000. Sei Investments Co. increased its stake in shares of Papa Johns International by 35.3% during the fourth quarter. Sei Investments Co. now owns 889,918 shares of the company’s stock worth $67,838,000 after purchasing an additional 232,177 shares during the period. Wellington Management Group LLP increased its stake in shares of Papa Johns International by 12.8% during the fourth quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 1,698,833 shares of the company’s stock worth $129,502,000 after purchasing an additional 192,149 shares during the period. Finally, Vanguard Group Inc. increased its stake in shares of Papa Johns International by 4.6% during the first quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 3,769,885 shares of the company’s stock worth $251,074,000 after purchasing an additional 166,246 shares during the period.

Papa Johns International Company Profile

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.