Papa John’s International Target of Unusually Large Options Trading (NASDAQ:PZZA)

Papa John’s International, Inc. (NASDAQ:PZZA) saw unusually large options trading on Friday. Investors purchased 22,742 call options on the stock. This represents an increase of 488% compared to the average daily volume of 3,868 call options.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research analysts have weighed in on PZZA shares. Bank of America reaffirmed a “neutral” rating and issued a $50.00 price target (down previously from $62.00) on shares of Papa John’s International in a research note on Monday, October 6th. Benchmark restated a “buy” rating and set a $60.00 price objective (up from $50.00) on shares of Papa John’s International in a report on Monday, August 11th. Zacks Research lowered shares of Papa John’s International from a “hold” rating to a “strong sell” rating in a research note on Monday, October 20th. Stephens dropped their price target on Papa John’s International from $50.00 to $49.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus upped their price objective on Papa John’s International from $38.00 to $42.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research report on Friday, August 15th. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, nine have assigned a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, Papa John’s International currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $50.50.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the company. Caitong International Asset Management Co. Ltd lifted its stake in Papa John’s International by 4,646.7% in the 1st quarter. Caitong International Asset Management Co. Ltd now owns 712 shares of the company’s stock valued at $29,000 after purchasing an additional 697 shares during the last quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC lifted its holdings in Papa John’s International by 937.8% during the 1st quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC now owns 851 shares of the company’s stock valued at $34,000 after purchasing an additional 769 shares during the last quarter. Farther Finance Advisors LLC boosted its position in Papa John’s International by 181.8% during the second quarter. Farther Finance Advisors LLC now owns 947 shares of the company’s stock worth $46,000 after purchasing an additional 611 shares during the period. Investors Research Corp bought a new position in shares of Papa John’s International in the second quarter valued at about $49,000. Finally, Huntington National Bank boosted its holdings in shares of Papa John’s International by 7,600.0% during the 2nd quarter. Huntington National Bank now owns 1,001 shares of the company’s stock worth $49,000 after buying an additional 988 shares during the period.

Papa John’s International Stock Performance

PZZA traded down $1.85 on Friday, hitting $40.98. 821,455 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,387,104. The stock’s fifty day moving average is $48.37 and its 200-day moving average is $45.46. Papa John’s International has a 12 month low of $30.16 and a 12 month high of $56.23. The company has a market cap of $1.34 billion, a PE ratio of 18.12, a PEG ratio of 4.46 and a beta of 1.10.

Papa John’s International (NASDAQ:PZZA) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, November 6th. 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 $508.15 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $523.67 million. Papa John’s International had a negative return on equity of 14.42% and a net margin of 3.58%.The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up .3% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the firm earned $0.43 EPS. As a group, equities research analysts expect that Papa John’s International will post 2.19 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Papa John’s International Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, November 28th. Shareholders of record on Monday, November 17th will be paid a $0.46 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Monday, November 17th. This represents a $1.84 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 4.5%. Papa John’s International’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 81.42%.

Papa John’s International Company Profile

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.