Papa John's International, Inc. $PZZA Shares Purchased by Russell Investments Group Ltd.

Key Points

• Russell Investments Group Ltd. increased its holdings in Papa John's International by 31.3% during the first quarter, acquiring 102,137 additional shares, bringing their total ownership to approximately 1.31% of the company.
• Papa John's reported a quarterly revenue of $529.17 million, exceeding analyst estimates of $515.48 million, alongside an earnings per share (EPS) of $0.41 that outperformed expectations.
• The company declared a quarterly dividend of $0.46 per share, representing a 3.9% yield, with a payout ratio of 81.42% expected.

Russell Investments Group Ltd. grew its position in shares of Papa John's International, Inc. (NASDAQ:PZZA - Free Report) by 31.3% during the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 428,961 shares of the company's stock after buying an additional 102,137 shares during the quarter. Russell Investments Group Ltd. owned 1.31% of Papa John's International worth $17,622,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Other hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of the company. Earnest Partners LLC boosted its stake in shares of Papa John's International by 1.1% in the 4th quarter. Earnest Partners LLC now owns 2,589,991 shares of the company's stock worth $106,371,000 after buying an additional 27,912 shares during the last quarter. Deprince Race & Zollo Inc. increased its stake in shares of Papa John's International by 14.6% in the fourth quarter. Deprince Race & Zollo Inc. now owns 1,358,945 shares of the company's stock worth $55,812,000 after purchasing an additional 173,316 shares in the last quarter. Westwood Holdings Group Inc. increased its stake in shares of Papa John's International by 8.3% in the fourth quarter. Westwood Holdings Group Inc. now owns 1,117,238 shares of the company's stock worth $45,885,000 after purchasing an additional 85,236 shares in the last quarter. Segall Bryant & Hamill LLC lifted its holdings in Papa John's International by 34.7% in the 1st quarter. Segall Bryant & Hamill LLC now owns 776,169 shares of the company's stock worth $31,885,000 after purchasing an additional 199,840 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Dimensional Fund Advisors LP grew its position in shares of Papa John's International by 2.7% during the fourth quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 591,937 shares of the company's stock valued at $24,310,000 after purchasing an additional 15,513 shares in the last quarter.

Papa John's International Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ:PZZA traded up $1.1650 during trading on Friday, reaching $45.4850. 176,497 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,309,145. Papa John's International, Inc. has a 12-month low of $30.16 and a 12-month high of $60.75. The business's fifty day simple moving average is $46.13 and its 200-day simple moving average is $42.97. The firm has a market capitalization of $1.49 billion, a PE ratio of 20.10, a P/E/G ratio of 2.50 and a beta of 1.13.

Papa John's International (NASDAQ:PZZA - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, August 7th. The company reported $0.41 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $0.34 by $0.07. The business had revenue of $529.17 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $515.48 million. Papa John's International had a negative return on equity of 14.42% and a net margin of 3.58%.The business's revenue was up 4.2% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the business posted $0.61 EPS. On average, sell-side analysts anticipate that Papa John's International, Inc. will post 2.19 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Papa John's International Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, August 29th. Investors of record on Monday, August 18th will be issued a dividend of $0.46 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, August 18th. This represents a $1.84 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 4.0%. Papa John's International's payout ratio is 81.42%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several brokerages have recently issued reports on PZZA. Benchmark reaffirmed a "buy" rating and set a $60.00 price objective (up from $50.00) on shares of Papa John's International in a report on Monday, August 11th. Stifel Nicolaus lifted their price target on Papa John's International from $38.00 to $42.00 and gave the stock a "hold" rating in a research report on Friday, August 15th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft lifted their price target on Papa John's International from $40.00 to $46.00 and gave the stock a "hold" rating in a research report on Monday, August 11th. Stephens reiterated an "overweight" rating and issued a $52.00 price target (up previously from $50.00) on shares of Papa John's International in a research report on Friday, August 8th. Finally, UBS Group reissued a "neutral" rating and issued a $42.00 target price (up previously from $38.00) on shares of Papa John's International in a research note on Monday, August 4th. Five equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and six have given a Hold rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Papa John's International currently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $52.33.

About Papa John's International

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.