Zacks Investment Research Downgrades Papa Murphy’s Holdings, Inc. (NASDAQ:FRSH) to Hold

Zacks Investment Research lowered shares of Papa Murphy’s Holdings, Inc. (NASDAQ:FRSH) from a buy rating to a hold rating in a research note released on Friday, July 21st.

According to Zacks, “Papa Murphy’s Holdings Inc. operates as a franchisor and operator of the Take ‘N’ Bake pizza chain in the United States. The Company operates in three segments: Domestic Company Stores, Domestic Franchise and International. In addition to scratch-made pizzas, the company offers a growing menu of grab ‘n’ go items, including salads, sides and desserts. Papa Murphy’s Holdings Inc. is based in Vancouver, Washington. “

A number of other equities research analysts also recently issued reports on FRSH. Jefferies Group LLC reiterated a hold rating on shares of Papa Murphy’s Holdings in a research report on Thursday, May 11th. Wells Fargo & Company downgraded Papa Murphy’s Holdings from an outperform rating to a market perform rating and lowered their price target for the company from $5.25 to $5.00 in a research report on Tuesday, May 23rd. Seven research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, Papa Murphy’s Holdings has an average rating of Hold and an average target price of $4.75.

Papa Murphy’s Holdings (FRSH) traded up 2.49% during mid-day trading on Friday, reaching $4.53. The company had a trading volume of 93,750 shares. The stock’s market capitalization is $76.85 million. Papa Murphy’s Holdings has a one year low of $3.50 and a one year high of $6.88. The company’s 50-day moving average is $4.29 and its 200-day moving average is $4.56.

Papa Murphy’s Holdings (NASDAQ:FRSH) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, August 9th. The company reported $0.07 EPS for the quarter, topping the Zacks’ consensus estimate of $0.04 by $0.03. Papa Murphy’s Holdings had a positive return on equity of 3.16% and a negative net margin of 8.43%. The firm had revenue of $29.10 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $30.89 million. During the same period last year, the company earned $0.06 earnings per share. The business’s revenue for the quarter was down 2.6% on a year-over-year basis. Equities research analysts anticipate that Papa Murphy’s Holdings will post $0.31 earnings per share for the current year.

COPYRIGHT VIOLATION WARNING: This report was first reported by [[site]] and is the sole property of of [[site]]. If you are reading this report on another publication, it was illegally copied and reposted in violation of United States and international copyright laws. The original version of this report can be viewed at [[permalink]].

In related news, CEO Jean Birch acquired 10,000 shares of Papa Murphy’s Holdings stock in a transaction dated Monday, August 14th. The shares were purchased at an average cost of $4.27 per share, with a total value of $42,700.00. Following the completion of the purchase, the chief executive officer now owns 33,095 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $141,315.65. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, insider Weldon W. Spangler bought 21,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, August 15th. The stock was acquired at an average cost of $4.39 per share, for a total transaction of $92,190.00. Following the completion of the purchase, the insider now directly owns 11,000 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $48,290. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. Insiders have bought 668,939 shares of company stock worth $2,773,879 over the last ninety days. Insiders own 7.60% of the company’s stock.

Several hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the company. Signia Capital Management LLC acquired a new stake in Papa Murphy’s Holdings during the first quarter valued at about $2,610,000. B. Riley Financial Inc. acquired a new stake in Papa Murphy’s Holdings during the second quarter valued at about $437,000. Renaissance Technologies LLC acquired a new stake in Papa Murphy’s Holdings during the first quarter valued at about $421,000. FMR LLC acquired a new stake in Papa Murphy’s Holdings during the second quarter valued at about $361,000. Finally, KCG Holdings Inc. acquired a new stake in Papa Murphy’s Holdings during the first quarter valued at about $357,000. 31.69% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

About Papa Murphy’s Holdings

Papa Murphy’s Holdings, Inc is a holding company. The Company, together with its subsidiaries, is a franchisor and operator of the Take ‘N’ Bake pizza chain in the United States. The Company franchises the right to operate Take ‘N’ Bake pizza franchises and operates Take ‘N’ Bake pizza stores owned by the Company.

Get a free copy of the Zacks research report on Papa Murphy’s Holdings (FRSH)

For more information about research offerings from Zacks Investment Research, visit Zacks.com