Irth Capital presents $47 per share for Papa John’s Worldwide, sources have advised Reuters information company.
Revealed On 12 Mar 2026
Qatari-backed funding fund Irth Capital has this month made a $47-per-share provide to purchase pizza chain Papa John’s Worldwide, marking a second takeover try after a earlier bid alongside Apollo International Administration final 12 months, the Reuters information company reported, citing two sources acquainted with the matter.
The provide would worth the corporate at $1.5bn. Irth already owns roughly 10 p.c of the corporate, with half of its stake in derivatives, one of many sources stated.
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Irth declined Al Jazeera’s request for remark, citing authorized causes.
There isn’t any certainty Papa John’s will settle for Irth’s provide below evaluate, and one other bidder may emerge, stated the 2 sources, who couldn’t communicate publicly about the non-public talks. The Papa John’s inventory worth surged practically 20 p.c after The Wall Road Journal first reported information of the bid and closed buying and selling at $38.86.
Personal fairness large Apollo International withdrew its provide to take the pizza large non-public for $64 a share, Reuters reported in November.
Following this growth, activist investor Irenic Capital Administration constructed a stake in Papa John’s, including to the mounting hypothesis in regards to the pizza chain’s future.
Apollo and Irth Capital Administration submitted a joint provide for the corporate at simply above $60 per share earlier final 12 months, earlier than Apollo submitted a solo bid in early October, Reuters beforehand reported. Irth is not working with Apollo and its proposal consists of backing from Brookfield Asset Administration, one of many sources stated.
Irth, established in 2024 and backed by a member of the Qatari royal household, is led by co-founders Sheikh Mohamed bin Abdulla Al Thani and Matthew Bradshaw.
A deal for Papa John’s can be amongst its first main transactions.
Papa John’s began in Jeffersonville, Indiana, in 1984 and went public in 1993. It has been making an attempt a turnaround technique after years of battling weak demand below a number of CEOs.
