Papa John's International (NASDAQ:PZZA) Reaches New 12-Month Low at $60.24

Papa John's International, Inc. (NASDAQ:PZZA - Get Free Report) hit a new 52-week low on Thursday . The stock traded as low as $60.24 and last traded at $60.65, with a volume of 30858 shares traded. The stock had previously closed at $60.95.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research firms have recently commented on PZZA. Stephens began coverage on Papa John's International in a research note on Friday, April 12th. They set an "overweight" rating and a $75.00 target price on the stock. BMO Capital Markets lowered their target price on Papa John's International from $90.00 to $80.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a report on Friday, March 22nd. KeyCorp lowered their target price on Papa John's International from $84.00 to $78.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, April 9th. StockNews.com downgraded Papa John's International from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Saturday, March 9th. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus reaffirmed a "sell" rating and set a $65.00 price target on shares of Papa John's International in a research report on Thursday, January 4th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, five have issued a hold rating and six have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $82.10.

Papa John's International Trading Up 0.7 %

The firm has a 50-day simple moving average of $68.58 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $69.51. The company has a market capitalization of $2.02 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 24.94, a P/E/G ratio of 1.66 and a beta of 1.14.

Papa John's International (NASDAQ:PZZA - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, February 29th. The company reported $0.91 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.73 by $0.18. Papa John's International had a net margin of 3.84% and a negative return on equity of 19.46%. The business had revenue of $571.32 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $578.15 million. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $0.71 EPS. The company's revenue for the quarter was up 8.6% on a year-over-year basis. Equities research analysts anticipate that Papa John's International, Inc. will post 2.63 EPS for the current year.

Papa John's International Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, February 23rd. Investors of record on Monday, February 12th were paid a $0.46 dividend. This represents a $1.84 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.00%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, February 9th. Papa John's International's dividend payout ratio is presently 74.80%.

Insider Transactions at Papa John's International

In related news, Director Laurette T. Koellner sold 2,886 shares of Papa John's International stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, March 7th. The shares were sold at an average price of $70.21, for a total value of $202,626.06. Following the completion of the sale, the director now owns 18,804 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,320,228.84. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Insiders own 8.90% of the company's stock.

Institutional Trading of Papa John's International

Several institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in PZZA. American Century Companies Inc. purchased a new position in Papa John's International in the 1st quarter valued at approximately $491,000. US Bancorp DE lifted its position in shares of Papa John's International by 209.4% during the 1st quarter. US Bancorp DE now owns 4,415 shares of the company's stock worth $466,000 after purchasing an additional 2,988 shares during the last quarter. Natixis Advisors L.P. purchased a new stake in shares of Papa John's International during the 1st quarter worth $1,664,000. Bank of Montreal Can lifted its position in Papa John's International by 5.5% in the first quarter. Bank of Montreal Can now owns 3,854 shares of the company's stock valued at $408,000 after acquiring an additional 201 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Rhumbline Advisers lifted its position in Papa John's International by 2.2% in the first quarter. Rhumbline Advisers now owns 93,544 shares of the company's stock valued at $9,848,000 after acquiring an additional 1,970 shares during the last quarter.

Papa John's International Company Profile

Papa John's International, Inc operates and franchises pizza delivery and carryout restaurants under the Papa John's trademark in the United States and internationally. The company operates through four segments: Domestic Company-Owned Restaurants, North America Commissaries, North America Franchising, and International Operations.