Legal & General Group Plc Buys New Shares in Papa John's International, Inc. $PZZA

Key Points

• Legal & General Group Plc acquired 76,512 Papa John’s shares worth approximately $2.8 million, joining several other institutional investors that recently increased or initiated positions.
• Papa John’s shares opened at $22.68, near their 12-month low of $22.08. The company slightly beat quarterly earnings and revenue estimates, but revenue declined 8.8% year over year and profitability remained weak.
• Analyst sentiment is cautious, with a consensus “Reduce” rating and a $32 price target after several firms lowered ratings or targets. Securities-class-action allegations also create an ongoing legal overhang, with a lead-plaintiff deadline of November 2, 2026.

Legal & General Group Plc bought a new position in shares of Papa John's International, Inc. (NASDAQ:PZZA - Free Report) during the second quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund bought 76,512 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $2,813,000. Legal & General Group Plc owned about 0.23% of Papa John's International at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. BlackRock Inc. bought a new position in shares of Papa John's International in the 2nd quarter valued at about $182,315,000. Bank of New York Mellon Corp acquired a new position in shares of Papa John's International during the 2nd quarter worth about $13,942,000. Marshall Wace LLP bought a new stake in shares of Papa John's International in the 4th quarter valued at about $12,969,000. Quinn Opportunity Partners LLC acquired a new stake in Papa John's International in the 4th quarter valued at about $12,767,000. Finally, Earnest Partners LLC lifted its stake in Papa John's International by 19.6% in the 4th quarter. Earnest Partners LLC now owns 1,947,248 shares of the company's stock valued at $74,950,000 after purchasing an additional 318,816 shares during the last quarter.

Papa John's International Stock Up 0.6%

Shares of NASDAQ:PZZA opened at $22.68 on Friday. Papa John's International, Inc. has a 12-month low of $22.08 and a 12-month high of $55.74. The stock has a market cap of $746.63 million, a PE ratio of 28.71, a P/E/G ratio of 2.36 and a beta of 1.08. The business has a 50 day moving average of $28.75 and a 200-day moving average of $32.18.

Papa John's International (NASDAQ:PZZA - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, August 6th. The company reported $0.46 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $0.45 by $0.01. The company had revenue of $482.40 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $481.25 million. Papa John's International had a negative return on equity of 10.98% and a net margin of 1.34%.The firm's quarterly revenue was down 8.8% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $0.41 earnings per share. Equities research analysts expect that Papa John's International, Inc. will post 1.22 earnings per share for the current year.

Key Headlines Impacting Papa John's International

Here are the key news stories impacting Papa John's International this week:

• Neutral Sentiment: Multiple firms—including Robbins LLP, Rosen Law Firm, Bronstein, Gewirtz & Grossman, Faruqi & Faruqi, Levi & Korsinsky, and Pomerantz—issued substantially similar notices. These announcements largely seek to attract investors and potential lead plaintiffs rather than represent separate confirmed lawsuits. Robbins LLP investor alert
• Negative Sentiment: The complaint alleges that Papa John’s and certain executives misled investors about the company’s business prospects, potentially exposing the company to litigation costs, damages, and additional scrutiny. The allegations have not been proven in court. Robbins class action announcement
• Negative Sentiment: Investors seeking to serve as lead plaintiff generally have until November 2, 2026 to move forward. Continued law-firm outreach could keep the securities case and the company’s disclosures in focus, creating an ongoing overhang for PZZA. Faruqi & Faruqi shareholder notice

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of analysts have recently issued reports on PZZA shares. Piper Sandler cut their price objective on Papa John's International from $30.00 to $26.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a research report on Friday, August 7th. Wall Street Zen upgraded Papa John's International from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Sunday, July 26th. Bank of America reaffirmed an "underperform" rating and set a $34.00 price target (down from $42.00) on shares of Papa John's International in a report on Monday, July 13th. Benchmark cut shares of Papa John's International from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Friday, August 7th. Finally, Weiss Ratings upgraded shares of Papa John's International from a "sell (d)" rating to a "sell (d+)" rating in a report on Friday, August 21st. Six investment analysts have rated the stock with a Hold rating and three have assigned a Sell rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Papa John's International currently has an average rating of "Reduce" and a consensus price target of $32.00.

About Papa John's International

Papa John's International, Inc is a leading American pizza restaurant chain known for its focus on high-quality ingredients and consistent product offerings. Founded in 1984 by John Schnatter in Jeffersonville, Indiana, the company has grown to operate thousands of restaurants across the United States and in more than 40 international markets. Papa John's restaurants are primarily franchised, supported by a network of corporate-owned outlets that together drive brand standards, operational guidance and marketing efforts.

The core menu at Papa John's centers on a variety of hand-tossed and pan pizzas made with a signature stone-baked crust and topped with real cheese, vine-ripened tomato sauce and premium meats and vegetables.

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