WBI Investments LLC Has $1.85 Million Stake in Papa John’s International, Inc. $PZZA

WBI Investments LLC boosted its position in Papa John’s International, Inc. (NASDAQ:PZZA) by 46.5% in the second quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The firm owned 37,844 shares of the company’s stock after purchasing an additional 12,004 shares during the quarter. WBI Investments LLC’s holdings in Papa John’s International were worth $1,852,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other large investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Alberta Investment Management Corp grew its holdings in shares of Papa John’s International by 4.7% during the second quarter. Alberta Investment Management Corp now owns 129,133 shares of the company’s stock worth $6,320,000 after purchasing an additional 5,833 shares during the last quarter. Cetera Investment Advisers raised its holdings in Papa John’s International by 504.4% in the 2nd quarter. Cetera Investment Advisers now owns 62,916 shares of the company’s stock valued at $3,079,000 after buying an additional 52,507 shares during the last quarter. SG Americas Securities LLC acquired a new stake in Papa John’s International during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $263,000. Commonwealth of Pennsylvania Public School Empls Retrmt SYS boosted its position in Papa John’s International by 7.6% during the 2nd quarter. Commonwealth of Pennsylvania Public School Empls Retrmt SYS now owns 8,405 shares of the company’s stock worth $411,000 after buying an additional 594 shares during the period. Finally, Police & Firemen s Retirement System of New Jersey grew its holdings in Papa John’s International by 4.4% during the 2nd quarter. Police & Firemen s Retirement System of New Jersey now owns 7,571 shares of the company’s stock worth $371,000 after acquiring an additional 322 shares during the last quarter.

Papa John’s International Price Performance

Shares of Papa John’s International stock opened at $40.22 on Tuesday. The firm has a market cap of $1.32 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 17.80, a PEG ratio of 4.46 and a beta of 1.10. The stock’s 50-day moving average is $47.40 and its 200 day moving average is $46.04. Papa John’s International, Inc. has a one year low of $30.16 and a one year high of $55.74.

Papa John’s International (NASDAQ:PZZA) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, November 6th. The company reported $0.32 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.40 by ($0.08). The business had revenue of $508.15 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $523.67 million. Papa John’s International had a negative return on equity of 14.42% and a net margin of 3.58%.Papa John’s International’s quarterly revenue was up .3% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $0.43 earnings per share. On average, sell-side analysts expect that Papa John’s International, Inc. will post 2.19 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Papa John’s International Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, November 28th. Shareholders of record on Monday, November 17th will be issued a $0.46 dividend. This represents a $1.84 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 4.6%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, November 17th. Papa John’s International’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 164.29%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities analysts have recently issued reports on the stock. Benchmark reaffirmed a “buy” rating and set a $60.00 price target (up previously from $50.00) on shares of Papa John’s International in a research note on Monday, August 11th. Zacks Research downgraded Papa John’s International from a “hold” rating to a “strong sell” rating in a report on Monday, October 20th. Stephens lowered their target price on Papa John’s International from $50.00 to $49.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, November 7th. Mizuho upgraded Papa John’s International to a “hold” rating in a research report on Tuesday, October 28th. Finally, Weiss Ratings reissued a “hold (c)” rating on shares of Papa John’s International in a research report on Wednesday, November 5th. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, eight have issued a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $50.50.

About Papa John’s International

Papa John’s International, Inc engages in the operation and franchise of pizza delivery and carryout restaurants. It operates through the following segments: Domestic Company-owned Restaurants, North America Franchising, North America Commissaries, International Operations, and All Others. The Domestic Company-Owned Restaurants segment consists of retail sales of pizza and side items, breadsticks, cheese sticks, chicken poppers and wings, dessert items, and canned and bottled beverages.