SG Americas Securities LLC Makes New Investment in Papa John’s International, Inc. $PZZA

SG Americas Securities LLC bought a new stake in Papa John’s International, Inc. (NASDAQ:PZZA) during the fourth quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The institutional investor bought 166,704 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $6,416,000.

Other hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the company. Farther Finance Advisors LLC grew its position in shares of Papa John’s International by 22.2% during the third quarter. Farther Finance Advisors LLC now owns 1,157 shares of the company’s stock worth $56,000 after buying an additional 210 shares in the last quarter. Lazard Asset Management LLC acquired a new stake in Papa John’s International in the second quarter valued at $59,000. GAMMA Investing LLC boosted its stake in Papa John’s International by 41.0% during the 3rd quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 1,702 shares of the company’s stock valued at $82,000 after acquiring an additional 495 shares during the last quarter. Nisa Investment Advisors LLC grew its holdings in Papa John’s International by 342.9% during the 3rd quarter. Nisa Investment Advisors LLC now owns 1,767 shares of the company’s stock worth $85,000 after acquiring an additional 1,368 shares in the last quarter. Finally, iSAM Funds UK Ltd acquired a new position in Papa John’s International during the 3rd quarter worth $121,000.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities research analysts have recently issued reports on PZZA shares. Stephens cut their target price on shares of Papa John’s International from $49.00 to $40.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, February 27th. Mizuho decreased their price target on Papa John’s International from $40.00 to $34.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, February 20th. Zacks Research raised Papa John’s International from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Monday, January 26th. Benchmark cut their price objective on Papa John’s International from $60.00 to $50.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, February 27th. Finally, Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a “hold (c-)” rating on shares of Papa John’s International in a report on Friday. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and seven have assigned a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $45.00.

Papa John’s International Stock Performance

Papa John’s International stock opened at $32.41 on Wednesday. Papa John’s International, Inc. has a 1 year low of $29.55 and a 1 year high of $55.74. The firm’s 50-day moving average is $33.84 and its 200-day moving average is $40.13. The company has a market cap of $1.07 billion, a P/E ratio of 36.42, a PEG ratio of 1.54 and a beta of 1.23.

Papa John’s International (NASDAQ:PZZA) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, February 26th. The company reported $0.34 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.33 by $0.01. The business had revenue of $498.18 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $517.25 million. Papa John’s International had a net margin of 1.44% and a negative return on equity of 11.16%. The company’s revenue for the quarter was down 6.1% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $0.63 EPS. As a group, sell-side analysts predict that Papa John’s International, Inc. will post 2.19 earnings per share for the current year.

Papa John’s International Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, February 20th. Stockholders of record on Monday, February 9th were issued a dividend of $0.46 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, February 9th. This represents a $1.84 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 5.7%. Papa John’s International’s dividend payout ratio is 206.74%.

Papa John’s International Company Profile

Papa John’s International, Inc is a leading American pizza restaurant chain known for its focus on high-quality ingredients and consistent product offerings. Founded in 1984 by John Schnatter in Jeffersonville, Indiana, the company has grown to operate thousands of restaurants across the United States and in more than 40 international markets. Papa John’s restaurants are primarily franchised, supported by a network of corporate-owned outlets that together drive brand standards, operational guidance and marketing efforts.

The core menu at Papa John’s centers on a variety of hand-tossed and pan pizzas made with a signature stone-baked crust and topped with real cheese, vine-ripened tomato sauce and premium meats and vegetables.