Wedbush Cuts Papa John’s International (NASDAQ:PZZA) Price Target to $65.00

Papa John’s International (NASDAQ:PZZA) had its price target cut by equities research analysts at Wedbush from $76.00 to $65.00 in a research note issued to investors on Friday, Benzinga reports. The brokerage presently has an “outperform” rating on the stock. Wedbush’s price objective would indicate a potential upside of 22.13% from the stock’s current price.

A number of other research firms have also weighed in on PZZA. Benchmark lowered their target price on shares of Papa John’s International from $95.00 to $87.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, March 22nd. Stifel Nicolaus upgraded shares of Papa John’s International from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating and lowered their target price for the company from $65.00 to $60.00 in a report on Monday, April 22nd. Stephens restated an “overweight” rating and set a $75.00 price target on shares of Papa John’s International in a report on Thursday. BTIG Research cut shares of Papa John’s International from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating in a research report on Friday, March 22nd. Finally, BMO Capital Markets reduced their target price on Papa John’s International from $90.00 to $80.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a report on Friday, March 22nd. Six analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and six have given a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $79.40.

Papa John’s International Stock Performance

Shares of NASDAQ PZZA opened at $53.22 on Friday. The stock has a market cap of $1.75 billion, a P/E ratio of 21.63, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.58 and a beta of 1.16. The firm has a 50 day moving average price of $65.17 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $69.00. Papa John’s International has a 52-week low of $52.07 and a 52-week high of $86.38.

Papa John’s International (NASDAQ:PZZA) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, February 29th. The company reported $0.91 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.73 by $0.18. The business had revenue of $571.32 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $578.15 million. Papa John’s International had a net margin of 3.84% and a negative return on equity of 19.46%. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 8.6% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $0.71 earnings per share. Analysts predict that Papa John’s International will post 2.62 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Activity at Papa John’s International

In related news, Director Laurette T. Koellner sold 2,886 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Thursday, March 7th. The stock was sold at an average price of $70.21, for a total transaction of $202,626.06. Following the sale, the director now owns 18,804 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,320,228.84. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. 0.80% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Papa John’s International

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. SRS Capital Advisors Inc. raised its position in shares of Papa John’s International by 396.5% during the 4th quarter. SRS Capital Advisors Inc. now owns 422 shares of the company’s stock valued at $32,000 after buying an additional 337 shares in the last quarter. Cutler Group LLC CA purchased a new stake in Papa John’s International during the fourth quarter valued at about $32,000. Principal Securities Inc. bought a new stake in Papa John’s International during the fourth quarter worth about $41,000. Covestor Ltd boosted its holdings in shares of Papa John’s International by 277.8% in the 3rd quarter. Covestor Ltd now owns 733 shares of the company’s stock worth $50,000 after purchasing an additional 539 shares in the last quarter. Finally, CWM LLC raised its holdings in shares of Papa John’s International by 23.5% during the 4th quarter. CWM LLC now owns 819 shares of the company’s stock valued at $62,000 after buying an additional 156 shares in the last quarter.

About Papa John’s International

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.