Sanctuary Advisors LLC Makes New Investment in Papa Johns International, Inc. (NASDAQ:PZZA)

Sanctuary Advisors LLC purchased a new position in Papa Johns International, Inc. (NASDAQ:PZZA) in the 2nd quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The institutional investor purchased 28,284 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,329,000.

A number of other hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of the business. Seven Eight Capital LP grew its holdings in shares of Papa Johns International by 396.0% during the first quarter. Seven Eight Capital LP now owns 16,591 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,105,000 after buying an additional 13,246 shares in the last quarter. Texas Permanent School Fund Corp grew its stake in shares of Papa Johns International by 1.3% during the 1st quarter. Texas Permanent School Fund Corp now owns 28,178 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,877,000 after acquiring an additional 356 shares in the last quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Papa Johns International by 4.6% in the first quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 3,769,885 shares of the company’s stock valued at $251,074,000 after purchasing an additional 166,246 shares during the last quarter. Westwood Holdings Group Inc. lifted its position in shares of Papa Johns International by 4.3% in the second quarter. Westwood Holdings Group Inc. now owns 985,105 shares of the company’s stock worth $46,280,000 after purchasing an additional 40,996 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Quadrature Capital Ltd acquired a new position in Papa Johns International during the first quarter worth $1,142,000.

Papa Johns International Stock Performance

NASDAQ PZZA opened at $49.61 on Friday. The stock has a market cap of $1.64 billion, a PE ratio of 22.05, a P/E/G ratio of 3.23 and a beta of 1.20. The firm has a 50-day moving average of $48.25 and a 200-day moving average of $50.85. Papa Johns International, Inc. has a 52-week low of $39.90 and a 52-week high of $78.67.

Papa Johns International (NASDAQ:PZZA) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, August 8th. The company reported $0.61 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.53 by $0.08. Papa Johns International had a net margin of 3.25% and a negative return on equity of 19.85%. The firm had revenue of $507.89 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $520.13 million. During the same period last year, the business posted $0.59 earnings per share. The business’s revenue for the quarter was down 1.3% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, analysts predict that Papa Johns International, Inc. will post 2.27 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Papa Johns International Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, August 30th. Shareholders of record on Monday, August 19th were issued a $0.46 dividend. This represents a $1.84 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.71%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, August 19th. Papa Johns International’s dividend payout ratio is 81.78%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities research analysts have issued reports on PZZA shares. UBS Group lowered their price target on shares of Papa Johns International from $58.00 to $47.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, August 9th. Stephens reaffirmed an “overweight” rating and issued a $60.00 target price on shares of Papa Johns International in a research report on Thursday, August 8th. BMO Capital Markets reduced their price target on Papa Johns International from $75.00 to $65.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, August 9th. Bank of America lowered their price target on Papa Johns International from $78.00 to $69.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, July 17th. Finally, KeyCorp cut their price objective on Papa Johns International from $64.00 to $50.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Friday, August 9th. Seven equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seven have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $58.82.

Papa Johns International 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.