Moody National Bank Trust Division Boosts Stock Holdings in Papa Johns International, Inc. (NASDAQ:PZZA)

Moody National Bank Trust Division grew its stake in shares of Papa Johns International, Inc. (NASDAQ:PZZA - Free Report) by 142.3% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 22,644 shares of the company's stock after buying an additional 13,297 shares during the period. Moody National Bank Trust Division owned 0.07% of Papa Johns International worth $930,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Other hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of the company. Irth Capital Management LP purchased a new position in Papa Johns International during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $66,883,000. Natixis Advisors LLC grew its holdings in shares of Papa Johns International by 85.9% in the third quarter. Natixis Advisors LLC now owns 190,037 shares of the company's stock valued at $10,237,000 after purchasing an additional 87,801 shares in the last quarter. Stephens Investment Management Group LLC increased its position in Papa Johns International by 19.3% in the third quarter. Stephens Investment Management Group LLC now owns 1,091,733 shares of the company's stock worth $58,812,000 after purchasing an additional 176,470 shares during the last quarter. Westwood Holdings Group Inc. raised its stake in Papa Johns International by 4.3% during the second quarter. Westwood Holdings Group Inc. now owns 985,105 shares of the company's stock valued at $46,280,000 after purchasing an additional 40,996 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. lifted its position in Papa Johns International by 8.3% during the third quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 378,676 shares of the company's stock valued at $20,399,000 after purchasing an additional 28,883 shares during the last quarter.

Papa Johns International Trading Down 2.3 %

Shares of NASDAQ PZZA traded down $0.87 during mid-day trading on Wednesday, reaching $36.85. The company had a trading volume of 1,288,635 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,586,253. The stock has a market cap of $1.20 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 12.84, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.27 and a beta of 1.19. Papa Johns International, Inc. has a 52 week low of $36.25 and a 52 week high of $78.67. The business's 50-day moving average is $45.04 and its 200-day moving average is $46.91.

Papa Johns International (NASDAQ:PZZA - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, November 7th. The company reported $0.43 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $0.42 by $0.01. Papa Johns International had a net margin of 4.51% and a negative return on equity of 19.61%. The business had revenue of $506.80 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $497.28 million. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $0.53 EPS. The company's revenue for the quarter was down 3.1% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, equities research analysts forecast that Papa Johns International, Inc. will post 2.21 earnings per share for the current year.

Papa Johns International Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, November 29th. Shareholders of record on Monday, November 18th were given a dividend of $0.46 per share. This represents a $1.84 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 4.99%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, November 18th. Papa Johns International's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 64.11%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research firms have recently weighed in on PZZA. KeyCorp downgraded shares of Papa Johns International from an "overweight" rating to a "sector weight" rating in a report on Thursday, November 14th. Jefferies Financial Group reduced their price objective on Papa Johns International from $55.00 to $42.00 and set a "hold" rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday. Wedbush reaffirmed an "outperform" rating and issued a $60.00 price objective on shares of Papa Johns International in a research note on Wednesday. Stephens reissued an "overweight" rating and set a $62.00 target price on shares of Papa Johns International in a research report on Monday. Finally, Bank of America raised their price target on Papa Johns International from $66.00 to $71.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Tuesday, October 22nd. Eight investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and six have given a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $58.33.

Papa Johns International 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.