Irth Capital Management said to have bid for Papa John's, shares surge

(Sharecast News) - Papa John's International shares surged on Wednesday following a report that a Qatari-backed investment fund has submitted a bid for the pizza chain. According to the Wall Street Journal, citing people familiar with the matter, Papa John's is reviewing the bid from Doha-based Irth Capital Management, which includes backing from Brookfield Asset Management.

The WSJ said Irth offered to pay $47 per share for the business, which would value Papa John's at around $1.5bn. The offer price represents a premium of about 50% to where Papa John's shares traded before Irth's bid was submitted.

At 1625 GMT, the shares were up 16.3% at $37.51.

Sources told the WSJ there are no guarantees Papa John's will be receptive to Irth's bid and it's also possible another suitor could emerge.

It was understood that Irth tried to buy the pizza chain last year alongside private-equity firm Apollo Global Management, but those talks fell apart without an agreement. Irth is an existing shareholder in Papa John's.