Fmr LLC Increases Stake in Papa Johns International, Inc. (NASDAQ:PZZA)

Fmr LLC increased its holdings in Papa Johns International, Inc. (NASDAQ:PZZA) by 89.2% in the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 6,150 shares of the company’s stock after acquiring an additional 2,900 shares during the quarter. Fmr LLC’s holdings in Papa Johns International were worth $331,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Signaturefd LLC raised its holdings in shares of Papa Johns International by 66.9% in the 3rd quarter. Signaturefd LLC now owns 646 shares of the company’s stock valued at $35,000 after purchasing an additional 259 shares in the last quarter. Copeland Capital Management LLC purchased a new position in Papa Johns International during the third quarter valued at approximately $42,000. US Bancorp DE raised its stake in Papa Johns International by 225.4% in the third quarter. US Bancorp DE now owns 1,331 shares of the company’s stock worth $72,000 after buying an additional 922 shares in the last quarter. CWM LLC lifted its holdings in Papa Johns International by 27.5% during the third quarter. CWM LLC now owns 1,690 shares of the company’s stock worth $91,000 after buying an additional 365 shares during the period. Finally, nVerses Capital LLC bought a new stake in Papa Johns International during the 3rd quarter valued at $156,000.

Papa Johns International Stock Down 2.5 %

Shares of Papa Johns International stock opened at $38.91 on Friday. The company has a 50 day moving average price of $49.94 and a 200 day moving average price of $47.89. The firm has a market capitalization of $1.27 billion, a P/E ratio of 13.56, a PEG ratio of 2.27 and a beta of 1.16. Papa Johns International, Inc. has a 52 week low of $38.80 and a 52 week high of $78.67.

Papa Johns International (NASDAQ:PZZA) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, November 7th. The company reported $0.43 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.42 by $0.01. Papa Johns International had a net margin of 4.51% and a negative return on equity of 19.61%. The business had revenue of $506.80 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $497.28 million. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business posted $0.53 EPS. Papa Johns International’s revenue for the quarter was down 3.1% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, research analysts anticipate that Papa Johns International, Inc. will post 2.21 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Papa Johns International Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, November 29th. Investors of record on Monday, November 18th were paid a $0.46 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Monday, November 18th. This represents a $1.84 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 4.73%. Papa Johns International’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 64.11%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

PZZA has been the subject of several recent research reports. Bank of America boosted their price target on Papa Johns International from $66.00 to $71.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, October 22nd. Wedbush reiterated an “outperform” rating and issued a $60.00 target price on shares of Papa Johns International in a research note on Friday, December 13th. UBS Group increased their price target on shares of Papa Johns International from $47.00 to $56.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Friday, November 8th. KeyCorp cut shares of Papa Johns International from an “overweight” rating to a “sector weight” rating in a report on Thursday, November 14th. Finally, Stephens reiterated an “overweight” rating and set a $62.00 price objective on shares of Papa Johns International in a research note on Friday, December 13th. Eight equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and six have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, Papa Johns International presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $60.82.

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.