Willis Investment Counsel Acquires Shares of 34,700 Papa John’s International, Inc. $PZZA

Willis Investment Counsel acquired a new stake in Papa John’s International, Inc. (NASDAQ:PZZA) during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm acquired 34,700 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,336,000.

Several other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of PZZA. Royal Bank of Canada grew its holdings in Papa John’s International by 32.8% in the first quarter. Royal Bank of Canada now owns 19,028 shares of the company’s stock valued at $781,000 after purchasing an additional 4,705 shares during the period. AQR Capital Management LLC acquired a new stake in Papa John’s International in the first quarter valued at approximately $600,000. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. boosted its stake in shares of Papa John’s International by 4.6% in the first quarter. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. now owns 19,785 shares of the company’s stock worth $813,000 after acquiring an additional 879 shares during the last quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. boosted its stake in shares of Papa John’s International by 25.0% in the first quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. now owns 310,653 shares of the company’s stock worth $12,762,000 after acquiring an additional 62,103 shares during the last quarter. Finally, UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC boosted its stake in shares of Papa John’s International by 81.4% in the first quarter. UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC now owns 112,592 shares of the company’s stock worth $4,625,000 after acquiring an additional 50,536 shares during the last quarter.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of analysts have recently issued reports on PZZA shares. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a “hold (c-)” rating on shares of Papa John’s International in a research note on Friday, March 27th. Mizuho lowered their price target on Papa John’s International from $40.00 to $34.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock 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 research note on Monday, January 26th. Stephens lowered their price target on 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. Finally, Benchmark lowered their price target 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. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and seven have given a Hold rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $45.00.

Papa John’s International Stock Performance

Shares of Papa John’s International stock opened at $35.37 on Thursday. Papa John’s International, Inc. has a one year low of $29.55 and a one year high of $55.74. The company has a market cap of $1.16 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 39.74, a PEG ratio of 1.67 and a beta of 1.18. The business’s 50 day moving average price is $33.59 and its 200 day moving average price is $39.64.

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

Papa John’s International Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, February 20th. Investors of record on Monday, February 9th were given a dividend of $0.46 per share. The ex-dividend date was Monday, February 9th. This represents a $1.84 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 5.2%. Papa John’s International’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 206.74%.

Papa John’s International 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.