Papa Johns International (NASDAQ:PZZA) Trading Down 4.9% – Should You Sell?

Papa Johns International, Inc. (NASDAQ:PZZA) was down 4.9% during mid-day trading on Tuesday . The company traded as low as $47.84 and last traded at $47.84. Approximately 52,131 shares changed hands during trading, a decline of 95% from the average daily volume of 998,217 shares. The stock had previously closed at $50.30.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities analysts have recently issued reports on PZZA shares. KeyCorp lowered shares of Papa Johns International from an “overweight” rating to a “sector weight” rating in a report on Thursday, November 14th. Wedbush reiterated an “outperform” rating and issued a $60.00 price objective on shares of Papa Johns International in a research report on Friday, November 8th. Bank of America upped their price target on shares of Papa Johns International from $66.00 to $71.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, October 22nd. UBS Group boosted their price target on Papa Johns International from $47.00 to $56.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Friday, November 8th. Finally, Stephens reissued an “overweight” rating and issued a $62.00 price objective on shares of Papa Johns International in a research report on Thursday, November 7th. Eight investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and six have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $60.82.

Papa Johns International Price Performance

The stock has a 50-day moving average of $51.27 and a 200 day moving average of $48.15. The company has a market cap of $1.60 billion, a P/E ratio of 16.67, a PEG ratio of 2.47 and a beta of 1.16.

Papa Johns International (NASDAQ:PZZA) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, November 7th. The company reported $0.43 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.42 by $0.01. The business had revenue of $506.80 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $497.28 million. Papa Johns International had a net margin of 4.51% and a negative return on equity of 19.61%. The company’s revenue was down 3.1% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $0.53 earnings per share. Sell-side analysts predict that Papa Johns International, Inc. will post 2.21 EPS for the current year.

Papa Johns International Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, November 29th. Stockholders of record on Monday, November 18th were issued a dividend of $0.46 per share. The ex-dividend date was Monday, November 18th. This represents a $1.84 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.76%. Papa Johns International’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 64.11%.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Papa Johns International

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of PZZA. 1832 Asset Management L.P. acquired a new stake in Papa Johns International during the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $93,586,000. River Road Asset Management LLC boosted its holdings in Papa Johns International by 88.1% during the 3rd quarter. River Road Asset Management LLC now owns 2,285,665 shares of the company’s stock worth $123,129,000 after acquiring an additional 1,070,485 shares during the last quarter. Cowen AND Company LLC bought a new stake in Papa Johns International in the second quarter worth about $32,736,000. Earnest Partners LLC lifted its stake in Papa Johns International by 25.9% in the second quarter. Earnest Partners LLC now owns 2,170,945 shares of the company’s stock valued at $101,991,000 after purchasing an additional 446,477 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Wellington Management Group LLP purchased a new stake in Papa Johns International in the 3rd quarter worth about $15,845,000.

About Papa Johns 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.