Raymond James Financial Inc. Sells 11,358 Shares of Papa John's International, Inc. $PZZA

Key Points

• Raymond James Financial Inc. reduced its stake in Papa John's International by 8.3%, now owning approximately 0.39% of the company valued at $5.18 million.
• Papa John's reported quarterly earnings of $0.41 per share, exceeding expectations of $0.34, alongside a revenue of $529.17 million for the quarter.
• The company recently declared a quarterly dividend of $0.46, resulting in an annual yield of 3.9% with a payout ratio of 81.42%.

Raymond James Financial Inc. trimmed its stake in shares of Papa John's International, Inc. (NASDAQ:PZZA - Free Report) by 8.3% during the first quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 126,144 shares of the company's stock after selling 11,358 shares during the quarter. Raymond James Financial Inc. owned about 0.39% of Papa John's International worth $5,182,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Papa John's International by 4.1% during the first quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 399,784 shares of the company's stock valued at $16,423,000 after buying an additional 15,892 shares during the last quarter. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC raised its stake in Papa John's International by 117.4% during the 1st quarter. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC now owns 49,084 shares of the company's stock valued at $2,040,000 after acquiring an additional 26,505 shares in the last quarter. Exchange Traded Concepts LLC acquired a new position in Papa John's International during the 1st quarter worth $230,000. Templeton & Phillips Capital Management LLC grew its stake in shares of Papa John's International by 119.6% in the first quarter. Templeton & Phillips Capital Management LLC now owns 92,276 shares of the company's stock worth $3,791,000 after purchasing an additional 50,260 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Envestnet Asset Management Inc. grew its stake in shares of Papa John's International by 12.2% in the first quarter. Envestnet Asset Management Inc. now owns 166,128 shares of the company's stock worth $6,825,000 after purchasing an additional 18,099 shares in the last quarter.

Papa John's International Stock Up 0.3%

Shares of NASDAQ:PZZA traded up $0.16 during trading on Wednesday, reaching $48.92. The stock had a trading volume of 92,578 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,301,778. The stock has a fifty day simple moving average of $45.90 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $43.28. Papa John's International, Inc. has a 52 week low of $30.16 and a 52 week high of $60.75. The firm has a market capitalization of $1.60 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 21.65, a P/E/G ratio of 2.74 and a beta of 1.15.

Papa John's International (NASDAQ:PZZA - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, August 7th. The company reported $0.41 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.34 by $0.07. The firm had revenue of $529.17 million during 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 firm's revenue for the quarter was up 4.2% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $0.61 EPS. On average, analysts forecast that Papa John's International, Inc. will post 2.19 EPS for the current year.

Papa John's International Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, August 29th. Shareholders of record on Monday, August 18th were paid a dividend of $0.46 per share. The ex-dividend date was Monday, August 18th. This represents a $1.84 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.8%. Papa John's International's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 81.42%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of brokerages have weighed in on PZZA. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft upped their price target on shares of Papa John's International from $40.00 to $46.00 and gave the company a "hold" rating in a report on Monday, August 11th. UBS Group reissued a "neutral" rating and issued a $42.00 price objective (up from $38.00) on shares of Papa John's International in a research note on Monday, August 4th. Stifel Nicolaus boosted their price target on shares of Papa John's International from $38.00 to $42.00 and gave the company a "hold" rating in a report on Friday, August 15th. Benchmark reaffirmed a "buy" rating and set a $60.00 price target (up from $50.00) on shares of Papa John's International in a research note on Monday, August 11th. Finally, Stephens reissued 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 note on Friday, August 8th. Five 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, Papa John's International currently has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $52.33.

Papa John's International 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.