Papa John’s International is examining a renewed takeover proposal from Irth Capital Management, according to the Wall Street Journal (WSJ), citing people familiar with the matter.
The fresh proposal will take the pizza chain private at a valuation of $1.5bn. The proposal has financial backing from Brookfield Asset Management.
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Irth has put forward an offer of $47 per share, implying a premium of approximately 44% over the most recent closing price of the company’s stock.
As of Tuesday (11 March), Papa John’s had a market value of around $1bn.
The move follows Irth’s attempt last year to buy Papa John’s alongside private-equity firm Apollo Global Management, though the talks ended without an agreement.
However, Irenic Capital Management built a stake in Papa John’s to 10% recently, a source told WSJ.
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By GlobalDataThe publication added that there is no assurance that Papa John’s will agree to Irth’s latest offer, and additional interested parties could still surface.
Irth was created in 2024 as a global asset manager. Headed by co-founders Sheikh Mohamed bin Abdulla Al-Thani and Matthew Bradshaw, it is supported by a member of the Qatari royal family.
A potential acquisition of Papa John’s would rank among Irth’s first major moves.
Papa John’s is said to have been working on a turnaround effort in recent years following a prolonged period of softer demand and a succession of leadership changes.
Last month, Papa John’s International reported a fall in profit for Q4 and FY25. Net income for the quarter that ended on 28 December 2025 declined to $8.6m from $14.96m the year before.
