Stephens Investment Management Group LLC Has $58.81 Million Stock Holdings in Papa Johns International, Inc. (NASDAQ:PZZA)

Stephens Investment Management Group LLC grew its holdings in Papa Johns International, Inc. (NASDAQ:PZZA - Free Report) by 19.3% in the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 1,091,733 shares of the company's stock after buying an additional 176,470 shares during the quarter. Stephens Investment Management Group LLC owned 3.31% of Papa Johns International worth $58,812,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in PZZA. Signaturefd LLC boosted its stake in Papa Johns International by 66.9% in the 3rd quarter. Signaturefd LLC now owns 646 shares of the company's stock valued at $35,000 after buying an additional 259 shares in the last quarter. Copeland Capital Management LLC bought a new position in shares of Papa Johns International during the third quarter valued at $42,000. CWM LLC boosted its stake in shares of Papa Johns International by 65.6% in the 2nd quarter. CWM LLC now owns 1,325 shares of the company's stock valued at $62,000 after purchasing an additional 525 shares in the last quarter. US Bancorp DE grew its holdings in shares of Papa Johns International by 225.4% in the 3rd quarter. US Bancorp DE now owns 1,331 shares of the company's stock worth $72,000 after purchasing an additional 922 shares during the last quarter. Finally, nVerses Capital LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Papa Johns International during the 3rd quarter worth about $156,000.

Papa Johns International Stock Up 5.5 %

NASDAQ PZZA traded up $2.87 on Friday, reaching $55.26. The company had a trading volume of 1,671,249 shares, compared to its average volume of 977,335. Papa Johns International, Inc. has a 52 week low of $39.90 and a 52 week high of $78.67. The stock's 50 day moving average is $50.48 and its 200-day moving average is $49.51. The stock has a market cap of $1.80 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 27.04, a PEG ratio of 3.26 and a beta of 1.20.

Papa Johns International (NASDAQ:PZZA - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, August 8th. The company reported $0.61 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $0.53 by $0.08. The company had revenue of $507.89 million during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $520.13 million. Papa Johns International had a negative return on equity of 19.85% and a net margin of 3.25%. Papa Johns International's revenue was down 1.3% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $0.59 EPS. As a group, analysts forecast that Papa Johns International, Inc. will post 2.27 EPS for the current year.

Papa Johns International Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, November 29th. Investors of record on Monday, November 18th will be given a $0.46 dividend. This represents a $1.84 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.33%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, November 18th. Papa Johns International's dividend payout ratio is currently 88.46%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities analysts have commented on PZZA shares. Bank of America boosted 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. Stephens reiterated an "overweight" rating and issued a $60.00 price objective on shares of Papa Johns International in a research report on Thursday, August 8th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft reduced their price objective on Papa Johns International from $58.00 to $45.00 and set a "hold" rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, August 9th. KeyCorp lowered their target price on Papa Johns International from $64.00 to $50.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a research note on Friday, August 9th. Finally, UBS Group reduced their price target on shares of Papa Johns International from $58.00 to $47.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, August 9th. Seven investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seven have given a buy rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $59.00.

About Papa Johns 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.