Papa John’s International (NASDAQ:PZZA) Stock Rating Upgraded by Wall Street Zen

Papa John’s International (NASDAQ:PZZA) was upgraded by analysts at Wall Street Zen from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a note issued to investors on Sunday.

Several other analysts have also commented on the company. Mizuho dropped their target price on Papa John’s International from $34.00 to $33.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a report on Monday, May 11th. Bank of America reissued an “underperform” rating and issued a $34.00 price target (down from $42.00) on shares of Papa John’s International in a report on Monday, July 13th. Piper Sandler lowered their price objective on Papa John’s International from $32.00 to $30.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, May 8th. Weiss Ratings cut shares of Papa John’s International from a “hold (c-)” rating to a “sell (d+)” rating in a research note on Monday, May 18th. Finally, Stephens reaffirmed an “overweight” rating on shares of Papa John’s International in a report on Tuesday, July 21st. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, five have assigned a Hold rating and three have assigned a Sell rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Reduce” and a consensus price target of $36.50.

Papa John’s International Price Performance

NASDAQ PZZA opened at $30.29 on Friday. Papa John’s International has a 1 year low of $29.55 and a 1 year high of $55.74. The company has a market capitalization of $996.54 million, a PE ratio of 36.49, a P/E/G ratio of 1.98 and a beta of 1.12. The company has a fifty day moving average of $33.61 and a 200 day moving average of $34.32.

Papa John’s International (NASDAQ:PZZA) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, May 7th. The company reported $0.32 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.40 by ($0.08). The company had revenue of $478.61 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $485.51 million. Papa John’s International had a negative return on equity of 10.71% and a net margin of 1.37%.Papa John’s International’s revenue for the quarter was down 7.7% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $0.36 earnings per share. Research analysts expect that Papa John’s International will post 1.48 earnings per share for the current year.

Institutional Trading of Papa John’s International

Institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the company. Lazard Asset Management LLC acquired a new position in Papa John’s International in the 2nd quarter valued at $59,000. Skylands Capital LLC acquired a new stake in Papa John’s International during the 1st quarter worth $65,000. Leonteq Securities AG acquired a new stake in Papa John’s International during the 4th quarter worth $71,000. PNC Financial Services Group Inc. grew its holdings in shares of Papa John’s International by 42.9% during the first quarter. PNC Financial Services Group Inc. now owns 2,230 shares of the company’s stock worth $72,000 after buying an additional 670 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Kestra Advisory Services LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Papa John’s International during the fourth quarter worth $73,000.

About Papa John’s International

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.