Papa Johns International (NASDAQ:PZZA) Shares Gap Down – Here’s What Happened

Shares of Papa Johns International, Inc. (NASDAQ:PZZA) gapped down before the market opened on Thursday . The stock had previously closed at $50.79, but opened at $49.64. Papa Johns International shares last traded at $48.84, with a volume of 173,124 shares changing hands.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of brokerages have recently issued reports on PZZA. BMO Capital Markets reduced their price objective on Papa Johns International from $75.00 to $65.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, August 9th. Piper Sandler cut their price target on shares of Papa Johns International from $61.00 to $50.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, August 9th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft decreased their price objective on shares of Papa Johns International from $58.00 to $45.00 and set a “hold” rating for the company in a report on Friday, August 9th. Bank of America lifted their target price on shares of Papa Johns International from $66.00 to $71.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, October 22nd. Finally, Stephens restated an “overweight” rating and issued a $62.00 price objective on shares of Papa Johns International in a report on Thursday, November 7th. Eight investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and six have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $60.82.

Papa Johns International Stock Performance

The stock has a fifty day simple moving average of $51.77 and a 200 day simple moving average of $48.82. The firm has a market cap of $1.54 billion, a P/E ratio of 16.49, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.54 and a beta of 1.19.

Papa Johns International (NASDAQ:PZZA) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, November 7th. The company reported $0.43 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.42 by $0.01. Papa Johns International had a negative return on equity of 19.61% and a net margin of 4.51%. The business had revenue of $506.80 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $497.28 million. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm earned $0.53 EPS. Papa Johns International’s revenue was down 3.1% on a year-over-year basis. Research analysts predict that Papa Johns International, Inc. will post 2.23 earnings per share for the current year.

Papa Johns International Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, November 29th. Shareholders of record on Monday, November 18th will be issued a $0.46 dividend. This represents a $1.84 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.89%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, November 18th. Papa Johns International’s dividend payout ratio is 64.11%.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Papa Johns International

Large investors have recently made changes to their positions in the company. Signaturefd LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Papa Johns International by 66.9% in the third quarter. Signaturefd LLC now owns 646 shares of the company’s stock worth $35,000 after buying an additional 259 shares during the last quarter. Copeland Capital Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of Papa Johns International during the 3rd quarter worth $42,000. CWM LLC grew its position in shares of Papa Johns International by 65.6% during the 2nd quarter. CWM LLC now owns 1,325 shares of the company’s stock valued at $62,000 after acquiring an additional 525 shares during the period. US Bancorp DE increased its stake in shares of Papa Johns International by 225.4% in the 3rd quarter. US Bancorp DE now owns 1,331 shares of the company’s stock worth $72,000 after purchasing an additional 922 shares in the last quarter. Finally, nVerses Capital LLC bought a new position in Papa Johns International in the 3rd quarter worth $156,000.

About Papa Johns 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.