Papa Johns International, Inc. (NASDAQ:PZZA) Short Interest Update

Papa Johns International, Inc. (NASDAQ:PZZA) saw a significant drop in short interest during the month of October. As of October 31st, there was short interest totalling 3,440,000 shares, a drop of 43.2% from the October 15th total of 6,060,000 shares. Based on an average trading volume of 992,000 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is presently 3.5 days. Currently, 10.7% of the company’s shares are short sold.

Papa Johns International Stock Performance

PZZA traded down $0.19 on Wednesday, reaching $50.79. The company had a trading volume of 1,205,504 shares, compared to its average volume of 996,814. Papa Johns International has a 52-week low of $39.90 and a 52-week high of $78.67. The company has a market cap of $1.66 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 17.66, a P/E/G ratio of 2.55 and a beta of 1.19. The business has a 50 day simple moving average of $51.71 and a 200 day simple moving average of $48.91.

Papa Johns International (NASDAQ:PZZA) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, November 7th. The company reported $0.43 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.42 by $0.01. Papa Johns International had a net margin of 4.51% and a negative return on equity of 19.61%. The firm had revenue of $506.80 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $497.28 million. During the same quarter last year, the company posted $0.53 EPS. The business’s quarterly revenue was down 3.1% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, equities research analysts predict that Papa Johns International will post 2.23 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Papa Johns International Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, November 29th. Stockholders of record on Monday, November 18th will be issued a $0.46 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Monday, November 18th. This represents a $1.84 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.62%. Papa Johns International’s dividend payout ratio is currently 64.11%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

PZZA has been the topic of a number of analyst reports. KeyCorp reduced their price objective on shares of Papa Johns International from $64.00 to $50.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, August 9th. Bank of America upped their price target on shares of Papa Johns International from $66.00 to $71.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, October 22nd. Piper Sandler dropped their price objective on Papa Johns International from $61.00 to $50.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, August 9th. UBS Group raised their target price on Papa Johns International from $47.00 to $56.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Friday, November 8th. Finally, Stephens reissued an “overweight” rating and issued a $62.00 price target on shares of Papa Johns International in a research note on Thursday, November 7th. Seven equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seven have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, Papa Johns International currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $60.82.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Papa Johns International

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in PZZA. Texas Yale Capital Corp. raised its position in Papa Johns International by 5.6% during the 1st quarter. Texas Yale Capital Corp. now owns 4,562 shares of the company’s stock valued at $304,000 after purchasing an additional 240 shares during the last quarter. Signaturefd LLC raised its holdings in shares of Papa Johns International by 66.9% during the third quarter. Signaturefd LLC now owns 646 shares of the company’s stock valued at $35,000 after acquiring an additional 259 shares in the last quarter. Inspire Investing LLC lifted its stake in Papa Johns International by 6.6% in the first quarter. Inspire Investing LLC now owns 5,366 shares of the company’s stock worth $357,000 after acquiring an additional 333 shares during the period. Texas Permanent School Fund Corp boosted its holdings in Papa Johns International by 1.3% in the first quarter. Texas Permanent School Fund Corp now owns 28,178 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,877,000 after acquiring an additional 356 shares in the last quarter. Finally, CWM LLC increased its position in Papa Johns International by 27.5% during the 3rd quarter. CWM LLC now owns 1,690 shares of the company’s stock valued at $91,000 after purchasing an additional 365 shares during the period.

Papa Johns International Company Profile

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.