Papa John's International (NASDAQ:PZZA) Reaches New 12-Month Low Following Analyst Downgrade

Papa John's International, Inc. (NASDAQ:PZZA - Get Free Report)'s share price hit a new 52-week low on Monday after Loop Capital lowered their price target on the stock from $97.00 to $90.00. Loop Capital currently has a buy rating on the stock. Papa John's International traded as low as $51.86 and last traded at $51.92, with a volume of 832568 shares trading hands. The stock had previously closed at $53.32.

A number of other equities analysts have also issued reports on PZZA. Wedbush decreased their price objective on Papa John's International from $76.00 to $65.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a report on Friday. Stifel Nicolaus raised Papa John's International from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating and decreased their price objective for the stock from $65.00 to $60.00 in a report on Monday, April 22nd. Benchmark decreased their price objective on Papa John's International from $87.00 to $75.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a report on Friday. StockNews.com lowered Papa John's International from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Saturday, March 9th. Finally, Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft decreased their price objective on Papa John's International from $77.00 to $58.00 and set a "hold" rating for the company in a report on Friday. Six research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seven have given a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Papa John's International has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $76.36.

Insider Buying and Selling at Papa John's International

In other news, Director Laurette T. Koellner sold 2,886 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Thursday, March 7th. The shares were sold at an average price of $70.21, for a total transaction of $202,626.06. Following the transaction, the director now directly owns 18,804 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,320,228.84. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Company insiders own 0.80% of the company's stock.

Institutional Trading of Papa John's International

Institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the business. Seven Eight Capital LP lifted its holdings in shares of Papa John's International by 396.0% during the 1st quarter. Seven Eight Capital LP now owns 16,591 shares of the company's stock worth $1,105,000 after acquiring an additional 13,246 shares during the period. Edgestream Partners L.P. bought a new position in Papa John's International in the 1st quarter valued at approximately $267,000. Vanguard Group Inc. lifted its stake in Papa John's International by 4.6% in the 1st quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 3,769,885 shares of the company's stock valued at $251,074,000 after purchasing an additional 166,246 shares during the last quarter. Texas Yale Capital Corp. lifted its stake in Papa John's International by 5.6% in the 1st quarter. Texas Yale Capital Corp. now owns 4,562 shares of the company's stock valued at $304,000 after purchasing an additional 240 shares during the last quarter. Finally, State Board of Administration of Florida Retirement System lifted its stake in Papa John's International by 11.4% in the 1st quarter. State Board of Administration of Florida Retirement System now owns 10,458 shares of the company's stock valued at $697,000 after purchasing an additional 1,070 shares during the last quarter.

Papa John's International Stock Performance

The firm has a market cap of $1.72 billion, a P/E ratio of 23.28, a P/E/G ratio of 1.48 and a beta of 1.16. The company's 50 day moving average is $64.84 and its 200 day moving average is $68.99.

Papa John's International (NASDAQ:PZZA - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, May 9th. The company reported $0.67 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.58 by $0.09. Papa John's International had a net margin of 3.50% and a negative return on equity of 19.46%. The firm had revenue of $513.90 million during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $544.46 million. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $0.68 EPS. The company's revenue was down 2.5% on a year-over-year basis. On average, equities research analysts anticipate that Papa John's International, Inc. will post 2.53 EPS for the current year.

Papa John's International Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, May 31st. Stockholders of record on Monday, May 20th will be given a dividend of $0.46 per share. This represents a $1.84 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.52%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, May 17th. Papa John's International's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 81.78%.

About Papa John's International

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.