12:11 PM EDT, 05/08/2025 (MT Newswires) -- Papa John's International (PZZA) affirmed its guidance for a rebound in system-wide sales this year as the pizza restaurant operator's first-quarter revenue surpassed analysts' views.

Revenue for the quarter ended March 30 improved to $518.3 million from $513.9 million a year earlier, above the FactSet-polled consensus of $514.1 million. Adjusted per-share earnings came in line with analysts' estimates at $0.36, but down from $0.67 a year earlier.

Company-owned restaurant sales declined to $173.9 million in the first quarter from $191.3 million a year earlier, though commissary and advertising funds revenue rose.

Global system-wide restaurant sales increased 1% at $1.22 billion, driven by international comparable sales, the company said.

Papa John's continues to expect system-wide sales this year to grow 2% to 5%, rebounding from last year's 3.1% decline. The company's shares jumped 16% in Thursday's trading session.

"The strategic investments we've made to improve our value proposition, drive traffic in our restaurants and enhance our customer experience are driving momentum in the business, as evidenced by the sequential improvement in sales and transaction comps versus the fourth quarter, along with transaction share gains despite a challenging macro environment," Chief Executive Todd Penegor said at an earnings call, according to a FactSet transcript.

Papa John's maintained its outlook for North America and international comparable sales to be flat to up 2%.

"We remain cautious in our outlook given the dynamic global operating environment," Chief Financial Officer Ravi Thanawala told analysts on the call while discussing international operations.

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