Janney Montgomery Scott LLC Acquires Shares of 12,401 Papa John's International, Inc. (NASDAQ:PZZA)

Janney Montgomery Scott LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Papa John's International, Inc. (NASDAQ:PZZA - Free Report) during the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor acquired 12,401 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $509,000.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. CIBC Private Wealth Group LLC purchased a new position in shares of Papa John's International in the 4th quarter worth $30,000. Jones Financial Companies Lllp grew its stake in shares of Papa John's International by 111.9% during the 4th quarter. Jones Financial Companies Lllp now owns 1,358 shares of the company's stock valued at $56,000 after purchasing an additional 717 shares during the period. New Age Alpha Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Papa John's International during the 4th quarter valued at about $58,000. State of Wyoming bought a new position in shares of Papa John's International in the 4th quarter worth approximately $87,000. Finally, GAMMA Investing LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Papa John's International by 506.3% in the first quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 2,122 shares of the company's stock worth $87,000 after buying an additional 1,772 shares during the last quarter.

Papa John's International Stock Down 2.2%

NASDAQ PZZA traded down $1.08 during trading on Thursday, hitting $48.80. 540,590 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 1,255,654. The company has a market capitalization of $1.60 billion, a P/E ratio of 20.77, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 4.49 and a beta of 1.19. Papa John's International, Inc. has a 12-month low of $30.16 and a 12-month high of $60.75. The firm has a 50-day simple moving average of $43.50 and a 200-day simple moving average of $41.59.

Papa John's International (NASDAQ:PZZA - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, May 8th. The company reported $0.36 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.33 by $0.03. Papa John's International had a net margin of 3.77% and a negative return on equity of 15.72%. The company had revenue of $518.31 million for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $512.48 million. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business posted $0.67 earnings per share. Papa John's International's quarterly revenue was up .9% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, research analysts predict that Papa John's International, Inc. will post 2.19 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Papa John's International Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, May 30th. Investors of record on Monday, May 19th were given a $0.46 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, May 19th. This represents a $1.84 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.77%. Papa John's International's dividend payout ratio is currently 78.30%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

PZZA has been the subject of a number of research reports. Loop Capital reduced their target price on shares of Papa John's International from $60.00 to $56.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a report on Friday, May 9th. Benchmark restated a "buy" rating and issued a $50.00 price objective on shares of Papa John's International in a research note on Monday, May 12th. UBS Group cut their price target on Papa John's International from $45.00 to $38.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a report on Monday, May 5th. Stifel Nicolaus decreased their price objective on Papa John's International from $40.00 to $38.00 and set a "hold" rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, April 15th. Finally, Stephens reiterated an "overweight" rating and set a $50.00 price objective on shares of Papa John's International in a research note on Thursday, June 12th. Seven investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and six have assigned a buy rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Papa John's International presently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $51.25.

Papa John's International Company Profile

Papa John's International, Inc engages in the operation and franchise of pizza delivery and carryout restaurants. It operates through the following segments: Domestic Company-owned Restaurants, North America Franchising, North America Commissaries, International Operations, and All Others. The Domestic Company-Owned Restaurants segment consists of retail sales of pizza and side items, breadsticks, cheese sticks, chicken poppers and wings, dessert items, and canned and bottled beverages.