4,726 Shares in Papa John’s International, Inc. (NASDAQ:PZZA) Acquired by Aigen Investment Management LP

Aigen Investment Management LP bought a new stake in Papa John’s International, Inc. (NASDAQ:PZZA) in the 4th quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The fund bought 4,726 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $360,000.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of PZZA. Cutler Group LLC CA acquired a new position in Papa John’s International during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $32,000. SRS Capital Advisors Inc. grew its stake in Papa John’s International by 396.5% during the 4th quarter. SRS Capital Advisors Inc. now owns 422 shares of the company’s stock valued at $32,000 after purchasing an additional 337 shares during the last quarter. Principal Securities Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Papa John’s International in the fourth quarter valued at about $41,000. Covestor Ltd raised its stake in shares of Papa John’s International by 277.8% in the third quarter. Covestor Ltd now owns 733 shares of the company’s stock worth $50,000 after purchasing an additional 539 shares during the last quarter. Finally, CWM LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Papa John’s International by 23.5% during the fourth quarter. CWM LLC now owns 819 shares of the company’s stock worth $62,000 after purchasing an additional 156 shares during the period.

Insider Buying and Selling at Papa John’s International

In other Papa John’s International news, CEO Ravi Thanawala bought 1,900 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, May 14th. The stock was acquired at an average price of $52.41 per share, with a total value of $99,579.00. Following the completion of the acquisition, the chief executive officer now directly owns 38,920 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,039,797.20. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. In related news, CEO Ravi Thanawala purchased 1,900 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, May 14th. The stock was acquired at an average cost of $52.41 per share, for a total transaction of $99,579.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 38,920 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,039,797.20. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, Director Laurette T. Koellner sold 2,886 shares of the 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 directly owns 18,804 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,320,228.84. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 8.90% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

PZZA has been the subject of a number of recent research reports. Stifel Nicolaus raised shares of Papa John’s International from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating and reduced their price target for the stock from $65.00 to $60.00 in a research report on Monday, April 22nd. Stephens restated an “overweight” rating and set a $75.00 target price on shares of Papa John’s International in a research report on Thursday. Loop Capital cut their price target on Papa John’s International from $97.00 to $90.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, May 10th. 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, May 10th. Finally, BMO Capital Markets lowered their target price on Papa John’s International from $80.00 to $75.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, May 10th. Six research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seven have issued a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $76.36.

Papa John’s International Trading Up 0.7 %

NASDAQ:PZZA traded up $0.33 during trading hours on Friday, reaching $47.62. 1,418,655 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,325,647. The firm has a market cap of $1.57 billion, a PE ratio of 21.16, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.69 and a beta of 1.16. Papa John’s International, Inc. has a twelve month low of $46.81 and a twelve month high of $86.38. The stock’s 50-day moving average is $60.77 and its 200-day moving average is $67.89.

Papa John’s International (NASDAQ:PZZA) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, May 9th. The company reported $0.67 earnings per share for the quarter, topping 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 the consensus estimate of $544.46 million. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $0.68 EPS. The company’s revenue for the quarter was down 2.5% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, research analysts anticipate that Papa John’s International, Inc. will post 2.43 EPS for the current year.

Papa John’s International Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, May 31st. Investors of record on Monday, May 20th will be paid a $0.46 dividend. This represents a $1.84 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.86%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, May 17th. Papa John’s International’s dividend payout ratio is currently 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.