Papa John's International, Inc. $PZZA Shares Sold by Raymond James Financial Inc.

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. lowered its position in shares of Papa John's International, Inc. (NASDAQ:PZZA - Free Report) by 8.3% in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 126,144 shares of the company's stock after selling 11,358 shares during the quarter. Raymond James Financial Inc. owned 0.39% of Papa John's International worth $5,182,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in PZZA. Caitong International Asset Management Co. Ltd lifted its position in Papa John's International by 4,646.7% in the first quarter. Caitong International Asset Management Co. Ltd now owns 712 shares of the company's stock valued at $29,000 after purchasing an additional 697 shares during the period. Signaturefd LLC lifted its holdings in Papa John's International by 214.7% in the first quarter. Signaturefd LLC now owns 1,388 shares of the company's stock valued at $57,000 after acquiring an additional 947 shares during the period. CWM LLC grew its stake in shares of Papa John's International by 27.2% during the 1st quarter. CWM LLC now owns 1,610 shares of the company's stock worth $66,000 after purchasing an additional 344 shares during the period. GAMMA Investing LLC increased its holdings in shares of Papa John's International by 506.3% in the 1st quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 2,122 shares of the company's stock valued at $87,000 after purchasing an additional 1,772 shares in the last quarter. Finally, State of Wyoming purchased a new position in shares of Papa John's International in the 4th quarter valued at about $87,000.

Papa John's International Stock Performance

NASDAQ PZZA traded up $0.98 during trading hours on Wednesday, hitting $49.74. 1,012,299 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,018,104. The business's 50 day moving average is $45.90 and its 200-day moving average is $43.32. 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 market capitalization of $1.63 billion, a P/E ratio of 22.01, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.69 and a beta of 1.15.

Papa John's International (NASDAQ:PZZA - Get Free Report) last released its 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. Papa John's International had a net margin of 3.58% and a negative return on equity of 14.42%. The firm had revenue of $529.17 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $515.48 million. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned $0.61 earnings per share. Papa John's International's revenue was up 4.2% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, equities research analysts anticipate that Papa John's International, Inc. will post 2.19 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Papa John's International Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, August 29th. Stockholders of record on Monday, August 18th were paid a $0.46 dividend. This represents a $1.84 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.7%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, August 18th. Papa John's International's payout ratio is currently 81.42%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research firms have recently issued reports on PZZA. UBS Group reiterated a "neutral" rating and set a $42.00 price target (up from $38.00) on shares of Papa John's International in a research report on Monday, August 4th. Stifel Nicolaus lifted their target price on shares of 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. Benchmark restated a "buy" rating and set a $60.00 price objective (up from $50.00) on shares of Papa John's International in a research report on Monday, August 11th. Stephens reissued an "overweight" rating and issued a $52.00 price target (up from $50.00) on shares of Papa John's International in a report on Friday, August 8th. Finally, Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft lifted their price objective 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. Five analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and six have assigned a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $52.33.

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.