Wall Street Zen Upgrades Papa John’s International (NASDAQ:PZZA) to Hold

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

PZZA has been the subject of a number of other reports. 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. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft dropped their price target on shares of Papa John’s International from $45.00 to $35.00 and set a “hold” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, February 27th. UBS Group dropped their price target on shares of Papa John’s International from $42.00 to $33.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research note on Monday, March 2nd. Mizuho dropped their price target on shares of Papa John’s International from $34.00 to $33.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research note on Monday, May 11th. Finally, Benchmark dropped their price target on shares of Papa John’s International from $50.00 to $45.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, May 8th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, seven have given a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $38.50.

Papa John’s International Trading Down 1.1%

PZZA stock opened at $31.92 on Friday. Papa John’s International has a 12 month low of $29.55 and a 12 month high of $55.74. The company has a 50-day moving average price of $34.35 and a 200 day moving average price of $36.05. The stock has a market cap of $1.05 billion, a PE ratio of 38.46, a P/E/G ratio of 1.80 and a beta of 1.15.

Papa John’s International (NASDAQ:PZZA) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, May 7th. The company reported $0.32 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.40 by ($0.08). Papa John’s International had a negative return on equity of 10.71% and a net margin of 1.37%.The firm had revenue of $478.61 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $485.51 million. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $0.36 earnings per share. Papa John’s International’s revenue for the quarter was down 7.7% on a year-over-year basis. Sell-side analysts forecast that Papa John’s International will post 1.51 EPS for the current year.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Papa John’s International

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in PZZA. Lazard Asset Management LLC bought a new stake in Papa John’s International during the 2nd quarter valued at about $59,000. Skylands Capital LLC bought a new stake in Papa John’s International during the 1st quarter valued at about $65,000. Leonteq Securities AG bought a new stake in Papa John’s International during the 4th quarter valued at about $71,000. PNC Financial Services Group Inc. lifted its holdings in Papa John’s International by 42.9% during the 1st quarter. PNC Financial Services Group Inc. now owns 2,230 shares of the company’s stock valued at $72,000 after buying an additional 670 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Kestra Advisory Services LLC bought a new stake in shares of Papa John’s International in the 4th quarter valued at about $73,000.

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.