Papa Johns Launches Lou AI to Optimize Pizza Ordering
Written by Emily J. Thompson, Senior Investment Analyst
Updated: Apr 28 2026
0mins
Should l Buy PZZA?
Papa Johns unveils Lou AI - "a next-generation AI-powered pizza assistant available in the Papa Johns app designed to end group ordering chaos, help pizza lovers satisfy their cravings quickly and score great deals seamlessly," the company said. Lou AI is the first AI-powered platform deployed through Google Cloud's (GOOGL) Food Ordering agent that is equipping Papa Johns to "usher in a new era of pizza ordering that is more personalized, intuitive and seamless," the company added.
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Analyst Views on PZZA
Wall Street analysts forecast PZZA stock price to rise
9 Analyst Rating
3 Buy
6 Hold
0 Sell
Moderate Buy
Current: 34.810
Low
42.00
Averages
49.14
High
60.00
Current: 34.810
Low
42.00
Averages
49.14
High
60.00
About PZZA
Papa John’s International, Inc. operates and franchises pizza delivery and carryout restaurants and, in certain international markets, dine-in and delivery restaurants under the trademark Papa Johns. The Company operates through four segments. Its Domestic Company-owned restaurant segment consists of the operations of all domestic Company-owned restaurants; the North America commissaries segment comprises approximately 11 full-service regional dough production and distribution quality control centers in the United States; the North America franchising segment consists of franchise sales and support activities, and International operations segment principally consists of distribution sales to franchised Papa John’s restaurants located in the United Kingdom and its franchise sales and support activities. The Company operates approximately 6,030 Papa John’s restaurants in operation, consisting of 552 Company-owned and 5,478 franchised restaurants operating in 51 countries and territories.
About the author
Emily J. Thompson
Emily J. Thompson, a Chartered Financial Analyst (CFA) with 12 years in investment research, graduated with honors from the Wharton School. Specializing in industrial and technology stocks, she provides in-depth analysis for Intellectia’s earnings and market brief reports.
Papa John's to Announce Q1 Earnings on May 7
- Earnings Announcement: Papa John's is set to release its Q1 2023 earnings on May 7 before market open, with consensus EPS estimates at $0.37, reflecting a modest year-over-year growth of 2.8%, indicating slight improvement in profitability.
- Revenue Decline: The expected revenue for the quarter is $485.52 million, representing a 6.3% year-over-year decline, which suggests the company is facing sales challenges that could impact its future market performance.
- Historical Performance Review: Over the past two years, Papa John's has beaten EPS estimates 75% of the time but only 50% of the time for revenue, indicating relatively stable profitability but sluggish revenue growth.
- Estimate Revision Dynamics: In the last three months, EPS estimates have seen 2 upward revisions and 8 downward revisions, while revenue estimates experienced no upward revisions and 12 downward revisions, reflecting analysts' cautious outlook on the company's future performance.
See More
Champions of Tomorrow Scholarship Awarded to Griffin Seafoot
- Scholarship Award: Papa Johns Canada and the Canadian Hockey League have awarded Griffin Seafoot from British Columbia the $25,000 Champions of Tomorrow Scholarship, recognizing his outstanding achievements in hockey and academics as well as his contributions to the community.
- Leadership and Academic Excellence: At just 12 years old, Griffin, a goaltender from Kamloops, maintains an A average while mentoring younger players and supporting local minor hockey programs, showcasing his strong leadership skills.
- Community Impact: His initiated school food drive has collected over 10,000 pounds of food in the past four years, reflecting his deep commitment to community service and reinforcing his image as a young leader.
- Future Aspirations: Griffin has been accepted into Shad Canada, where he will participate in a leadership and STEM program this summer at St. Francis Xavier University, and he aims to study engineering at the University of Waterloo, demonstrating his ongoing pursuit of personal growth and societal contribution.
See More
Papa John's Annual Meeting: Shareholders Approve Directors
- Shareholder Voting Results: At the 2026 annual meeting, shareholders approved four out of six proposals, including the election of eight directors and the ratification of auditor Ernst & Young, indicating strong support for corporate governance, although two charter amendments failed to meet the 75% threshold, reflecting divisions over governance structure.
- Financial Performance Overview: CEO Todd Penegor reported that in 2025, global system sales reached approximately $5 billion, with revenues of $2.1 billion, adjusted EBITDA of $201 million, and free cash flow of $61 million, indicating stable financial growth amidst a highly competitive QSR market.
- Technology and Market Innovations: The company launched a new omnichannel app and partnered with Google Cloud to develop an AI-driven food ordering agent, aimed at enhancing customer experience and operational efficiency, while attracting nearly 41 million loyalty members through menu innovations and promotional activities, showcasing strong customer growth potential.
- Cost Savings and Franchising: The company expects to achieve at least $60 million in system-wide cost savings by 2028 and has completed the transfer of 85 restaurants to franchisees, demonstrating ongoing efforts in supply chain optimization and operational efficiency enhancement.
See More
Domino's Pizza Same-Store Sales Growth Misses Expectations
- Weak Sales Growth: Domino's reported a mere 0.9% increase in U.S. same-store sales, significantly below the 2.3% expected by Wall Street analysts, resulting in a 10% drop in stock price during morning trading, indicating market disappointment with its performance.
- Lowered Full-Year Forecast: The company revised its full-year U.S. same-store sales growth forecast to low-single digits, down from a previous estimate of 3%, reflecting a cautious outlook on future sales that could impact investor confidence.
- Increased Competition: During the quarter, Domino's faced intensified competition as rivals like Papa John's and Pizza Hut matched its $9.99 promotional price, while Little Caesars undercut its $6.99 deal, highlighting the fierce competitive landscape in the pizza industry.
- Market Share Potential: Despite these challenges, CEO Weiner remains optimistic about the company's long-term prospects, suggesting that competitors may close stores, which could further solidify Domino's dominant position in the pizza market, especially given its significantly larger advertising budget compared to rivals.
See More
Domino's Pizza Reports Disappointing Sales, Stock Drops
- Weak Same-Store Sales: Domino's reported a disappointing 0.9% growth in U.S. same-store sales, significantly below the 2.3% expected by Wall Street analysts, leading to a 10% drop in stock price during morning trading on Monday, indicating market disappointment with the company's performance.
- Lowered Full-Year Forecast: The company revised its full-year U.S. same-store sales growth forecast down to low-single digits from a previous estimate of 3%, reflecting a challenging outlook amid pressures from winter weather and declining consumer sentiment.
- Increased Competition: Domino's faces intensified competition from rivals like Papa John's and Pizza Hut, which have matched its $9.99 promotional pricing, further squeezing Domino's market share and highlighting the competitive landscape in the pizza industry.
- Long-Term Confidence: Despite short-term challenges, CEO Russell Weiner expressed confidence in the company's long-term prospects, citing a larger advertising budget compared to competitors and potential market opportunities arising from the possible sale of rival chains, which could enhance Domino's market position.
See More
Yum! Brands Conducts Strategic Review for Pizza Hut Sale
- Strategic Review Initiated: Yum! Brands has officially announced a strategic review for Pizza Hut, potentially including a sale of the iconic fast-food brand with nearly 20,000 locations globally, set to be completed by year-end 2025, aiming to enhance brand value and market competitiveness.
- Sale Potential Assessment: Analyst Chris O'Cull estimates Pizza Hut could be sold for approximately $3.5 billion, a move that would help eliminate underperformance risks and potentially boost investor confidence in the company's steady growth, reflecting market expectations for brand revitalization.
- CEO Leadership Change: New CEO Chris Turner took over on October 1, 2025, bringing extensive strategic and operational leadership experience, having previously served as CFO at Yum! Brands where he drove digital transformation, and is expected to further push brand innovation and market expansion.
- Changing Competitive Landscape: Pizza Hut's U.S. sales fell by 5% in 2025, while Taco Bell saw a 7% increase, highlighting the growing market share of competitors like Domino's Pizza, prompting Yum! Brands to adopt more aggressive strategies to respond to the rapidly changing external environment.
See More
Papa John's to Announce Q1 Earnings on May 7
- Earnings Announcement: Papa John's is set to release its Q1 2023 earnings on May 7 before market open, with consensus EPS estimates at $0.37, reflecting a modest year-over-year growth of 2.8%, indicating slight improvement in profitability.
- Revenue Decline: The expected revenue for the quarter is $485.52 million, representing a 6.3% year-over-year decline, which suggests the company is facing sales challenges that could impact its future market performance.
- Historical Performance Review: Over the past two years, Papa John's has beaten EPS estimates 75% of the time but only 50% of the time for revenue, indicating relatively stable profitability but sluggish revenue growth.
- Estimate Revision Dynamics: In the last three months, EPS estimates have seen 2 upward revisions and 8 downward revisions, while revenue estimates experienced no upward revisions and 12 downward revisions, reflecting analysts' cautious outlook on the company's future performance.
See More
Champions of Tomorrow Scholarship Awarded to Griffin Seafoot
- Scholarship Award: Papa Johns Canada and the Canadian Hockey League have awarded Griffin Seafoot from British Columbia the $25,000 Champions of Tomorrow Scholarship, recognizing his outstanding achievements in hockey and academics as well as his contributions to the community.
- Leadership and Academic Excellence: At just 12 years old, Griffin, a goaltender from Kamloops, maintains an A average while mentoring younger players and supporting local minor hockey programs, showcasing his strong leadership skills.
- Community Impact: His initiated school food drive has collected over 10,000 pounds of food in the past four years, reflecting his deep commitment to community service and reinforcing his image as a young leader.
- Future Aspirations: Griffin has been accepted into Shad Canada, where he will participate in a leadership and STEM program this summer at St. Francis Xavier University, and he aims to study engineering at the University of Waterloo, demonstrating his ongoing pursuit of personal growth and societal contribution.
See More
Papa John's Annual Meeting: Shareholders Approve Directors
- Shareholder Voting Results: At the 2026 annual meeting, shareholders approved four out of six proposals, including the election of eight directors and the ratification of auditor Ernst & Young, indicating strong support for corporate governance, although two charter amendments failed to meet the 75% threshold, reflecting divisions over governance structure.
- Financial Performance Overview: CEO Todd Penegor reported that in 2025, global system sales reached approximately $5 billion, with revenues of $2.1 billion, adjusted EBITDA of $201 million, and free cash flow of $61 million, indicating stable financial growth amidst a highly competitive QSR market.
- Technology and Market Innovations: The company launched a new omnichannel app and partnered with Google Cloud to develop an AI-driven food ordering agent, aimed at enhancing customer experience and operational efficiency, while attracting nearly 41 million loyalty members through menu innovations and promotional activities, showcasing strong customer growth potential.
- Cost Savings and Franchising: The company expects to achieve at least $60 million in system-wide cost savings by 2028 and has completed the transfer of 85 restaurants to franchisees, demonstrating ongoing efforts in supply chain optimization and operational efficiency enhancement.
See More
Domino's Pizza Same-Store Sales Growth Misses Expectations
- Weak Sales Growth: Domino's reported a mere 0.9% increase in U.S. same-store sales, significantly below the 2.3% expected by Wall Street analysts, resulting in a 10% drop in stock price during morning trading, indicating market disappointment with its performance.
- Lowered Full-Year Forecast: The company revised its full-year U.S. same-store sales growth forecast to low-single digits, down from a previous estimate of 3%, reflecting a cautious outlook on future sales that could impact investor confidence.
- Increased Competition: During the quarter, Domino's faced intensified competition as rivals like Papa John's and Pizza Hut matched its $9.99 promotional price, while Little Caesars undercut its $6.99 deal, highlighting the fierce competitive landscape in the pizza industry.
- Market Share Potential: Despite these challenges, CEO Weiner remains optimistic about the company's long-term prospects, suggesting that competitors may close stores, which could further solidify Domino's dominant position in the pizza market, especially given its significantly larger advertising budget compared to rivals.
See More
Domino's Pizza Reports Disappointing Sales, Stock Drops
- Weak Same-Store Sales: Domino's reported a disappointing 0.9% growth in U.S. same-store sales, significantly below the 2.3% expected by Wall Street analysts, leading to a 10% drop in stock price during morning trading on Monday, indicating market disappointment with the company's performance.
- Lowered Full-Year Forecast: The company revised its full-year U.S. same-store sales growth forecast down to low-single digits from a previous estimate of 3%, reflecting a challenging outlook amid pressures from winter weather and declining consumer sentiment.
- Increased Competition: Domino's faces intensified competition from rivals like Papa John's and Pizza Hut, which have matched its $9.99 promotional pricing, further squeezing Domino's market share and highlighting the competitive landscape in the pizza industry.
- Long-Term Confidence: Despite short-term challenges, CEO Russell Weiner expressed confidence in the company's long-term prospects, citing a larger advertising budget compared to competitors and potential market opportunities arising from the possible sale of rival chains, which could enhance Domino's market position.
See More
Yum! Brands Conducts Strategic Review for Pizza Hut Sale
- Strategic Review Initiated: Yum! Brands has officially announced a strategic review for Pizza Hut, potentially including a sale of the iconic fast-food brand with nearly 20,000 locations globally, set to be completed by year-end 2025, aiming to enhance brand value and market competitiveness.
- Sale Potential Assessment: Analyst Chris O'Cull estimates Pizza Hut could be sold for approximately $3.5 billion, a move that would help eliminate underperformance risks and potentially boost investor confidence in the company's steady growth, reflecting market expectations for brand revitalization.
- CEO Leadership Change: New CEO Chris Turner took over on October 1, 2025, bringing extensive strategic and operational leadership experience, having previously served as CFO at Yum! Brands where he drove digital transformation, and is expected to further push brand innovation and market expansion.
- Changing Competitive Landscape: Pizza Hut's U.S. sales fell by 5% in 2025, while Taco Bell saw a 7% increase, highlighting the growing market share of competitors like Domino's Pizza, prompting Yum! Brands to adopt more aggressive strategies to respond to the rapidly changing external environment.
See More
