Papa Johns CEO Blames NFL on Slow Sales

According to the CEO of Papa Johns, the reason why the company’s sales declined is because of the NFL.

Founder and CEO John Schnatter is blaming the protests in the NFL and Commissioner Roger Goodell’s leadership
for his company’s declining sales.

Apparently the pizza CEO thinks that because NFL ratings are dropping, there are not enough American’s sitting around at home wanting to order a pizza. Considering that the company has an agreement with the NFL as well as 23 individual teams, maybe there is some sense to this.

Scnatter said in the company’s Q3 earnings call, “The NFL has hurt us by not resolving the current debacle to the players’ and owners’ satisfaction. NFL leadership has hurt Papa John’s shareholders.”

“This should have been nipped in the bud a year and a half ago,” Schnatter continued. “Like many sponsors, we’re in touch with the NFL. Once the issue is resolved, we’re optimistic the NFL’s best years are ahead.”

Shares of Papa Johns were tumbling to their lowest price in a year and a half on Wednesday after the company released its third quarter earnings report.

The company reported adjusted earnings of 60 cents per share, beating the analyst estimate by one penny. Revenues at $431.7 million also was ahead of the $426.7 million expected by the Street.

For 2017, the company has forecast adjusted earnings per share growth of 3% to 7%. Previously the company had projected a range of 8% to 12%.

Disclaimer: We have no position in Papa John’s Int’l, Inc. (NASDAQ: PZZA) and have not been compensated for this article.