Papa Johns International, Inc. (NASDAQ:PZZA) Short Interest Up 46.5% in February

Papa Johns International, Inc. (NASDAQ:PZZA) saw a significant growth in short interest in the month of February. As of February 15th, there was short interest totalling 5,510,000 shares, a growth of 46.5% from the January 31st total of 3,760,000 shares. Based on an average daily volume of 1,520,000 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is currently 3.6 days. Approximately 17.1% of the company’s stock are short sold.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities analysts have recently weighed in on the company. Wedbush reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and set a $60.00 target price on shares of Papa Johns International in a research report on Friday. UBS Group decreased their price objective on Papa Johns International from $56.00 to $45.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, January 7th. Loop Capital decreased their price objective on Papa Johns International from $73.00 to $60.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, January 21st. Stephens restated an “overweight” rating and issued a $60.00 target price on shares of Papa Johns International in a research note on Thursday, February 27th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group cut their target price on Papa Johns International from $55.00 to $42.00 and set a “hold” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, January 15th. Eight investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and six have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $55.67.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Papa Johns International

Hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the business. Irth Capital Management LP bought a new stake in Papa Johns International in the fourth quarter worth $66,883,000. River Road Asset Management LLC boosted its stake in shares of Papa Johns International by 88.1% in the third quarter. River Road Asset Management LLC now owns 2,285,665 shares of the company’s stock worth $123,129,000 after acquiring an additional 1,070,485 shares during the period. Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership boosted its stake in Papa Johns International by 117.3% during the fourth quarter. Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership now owns 1,118,403 shares of the company’s stock valued at $45,933,000 after buying an additional 603,650 shares during the last quarter. Point72 Asset Management L.P. bought a new position in Papa Johns International during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $17,328,000. Finally, Segall Bryant & Hamill LLC boosted its stake in Papa Johns International by 131.4% during the fourth quarter. Segall Bryant & Hamill LLC now owns 576,329 shares of the company’s stock valued at $23,670,000 after buying an additional 327,300 shares during the last quarter.

Papa Johns International Stock Up 4.6 %

Shares of NASDAQ PZZA traded up $2.06 during trading hours on Tuesday, reaching $46.63. 898,520 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 1,823,580. The company’s 50-day simple moving average is $41.64 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $46.76. The company has a market capitalization of $1.52 billion, a P/E ratio of 16.25, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.41 and a beta of 1.19. Papa Johns International has a 52-week low of $35.28 and a 52-week high of $72.88.

Papa Johns International Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, February 21st. Stockholders of record on Monday, February 10th were paid a dividend of $0.46 per share. The ex-dividend date was Monday, February 10th. This represents a $1.84 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.95%. Papa Johns International’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 73.02%.

About Papa Johns International

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.