Insider Selling: El Pollo Loco (NASDAQ:LOCO) Major Shareholder Sells $334,600.00 in Stock

El Pollo Loco Holdings, Inc. (NASDAQ:LOCO) major shareholder Sardar Biglari sold 20,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, August 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $16.73, for a total transaction of $334,600.00. Following the transaction, the insider directly owned 106,422 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,780,440.06. This represents a 15.82% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Major shareholders that own at least 10% of a company’s shares are required to disclose their transactions with the SEC.

Sardar Biglari also recently made the following trade(s):

• On Wednesday, August 5th, Sardar Biglari sold 80,000 shares of El Pollo Loco stock. The stock was sold at an average price of $16.90, for a total value of $1,352,000.00.
• On Thursday, July 30th, Sardar Biglari sold 546 shares of El Pollo Loco stock. The shares were sold at an average price of $16.70, for a total value of $9,118.20.
• On Wednesday, July 29th, Sardar Biglari sold 6,611 shares of El Pollo Loco stock. The stock was sold at an average price of $16.71, for a total value of $110,469.81.
• On Friday, July 17th, Sardar Biglari sold 11,000 shares of El Pollo Loco stock. The stock was sold at an average price of $16.71, for a total value of $183,810.00.
• On Monday, July 13th, Sardar Biglari sold 75,000 shares of El Pollo Loco stock. The stock was sold at an average price of $16.74, for a total value of $1,255,500.00.
• On Thursday, July 2nd, Sardar Biglari sold 9,525 shares of El Pollo Loco stock. The shares were sold at an average price of $16.92, for a total value of $161,163.00.
• On Wednesday, July 1st, Sardar Biglari sold 132,421 shares of El Pollo Loco stock. The shares were sold at an average price of $17.27, for a total value of $2,286,910.67.
• On Tuesday, June 30th, Sardar Biglari sold 22,600 shares of El Pollo Loco stock. The stock was sold at an average price of $16.91, for a total transaction of $382,166.00.
• On Monday, June 29th, Sardar Biglari sold 100,000 shares of El Pollo Loco stock. The shares were sold at an average price of $16.58, for a total transaction of $1,658,000.00.
• On Friday, June 26th, Sardar Biglari sold 100,000 shares of El Pollo Loco stock. The shares were sold at an average price of $16.75, for a total transaction of $1,675,000.00.

El Pollo Loco Stock Down 7.4%

NASDAQ:LOCO opened at $15.16 on Friday. The firm has a market cap of $461.62 million, a P/E ratio of 12.96 and a beta of 0.78. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.15, a quick ratio of 0.32 and a current ratio of 0.34. El Pollo Loco Holdings, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $8.98 and a fifty-two week high of $17.40. The firm has a 50-day simple moving average of $15.94 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $13.74.

El Pollo Loco (NASDAQ:LOCO) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, August 6th. The restaurant operator reported $0.30 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.28 by $0.02. The business had revenue of $129.57 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $130.29 million. El Pollo Loco had a net margin of 6.96% and a return on equity of 11.10%. Analysts predict that El Pollo Loco Holdings, Inc. will post 0.95 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

El Pollo Loco announced that its Board of Directors has authorized a stock buyback plan on Thursday, May 28th that permits the company to buyback $40.00 million in shares. This buyback authorization permits the restaurant operator to reacquire up to 9.5% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback plans are usually a sign that the company’s leadership believes its shares are undervalued.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the company. Tower Research Capital LLC TRC increased its position in shares of El Pollo Loco by 85.0% during the 2nd quarter. Tower Research Capital LLC TRC now owns 3,862 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock valued at $43,000 after purchasing an additional 1,774 shares during the last quarter. Kestra Advisory Services LLC purchased a new position in shares of El Pollo Loco in the fourth quarter worth approximately $50,000. BNP Paribas Financial Markets grew its position in El Pollo Loco by 89.5% during the third quarter. BNP Paribas Financial Markets now owns 5,277 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock valued at $51,000 after buying an additional 2,493 shares during the period. State of Wyoming bought a new stake in El Pollo Loco during the first quarter valued at approximately $88,000. Finally, Quinn Opportunity Partners LLC purchased a new stake in El Pollo Loco during the third quarter valued at approximately $97,000. 81.28% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

LOCO has been the topic of several analyst reports. Weiss Ratings raised El Pollo Loco from a “hold (c+)” rating to a “buy (b-)” rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 15th. Freedom Capital raised El Pollo Loco to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, July 1st. DA Davidson boosted their price target on El Pollo Loco from $13.00 to $15.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Monday, May 11th. Finally, Benchmark upped their price target on El Pollo Loco from $18.00 to $21.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Friday. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, three have assigned a Buy rating and four have issued a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $15.62.

About El Pollo Loco

El Pollo Loco (NASDAQ: LOCO) is a fast-casual restaurant chain specializing in Mexican-style fire-grilled chicken and complementary menu offerings. The company’s signature product is its marinated, flame-grilled chicken, which is prepared in an open-flame rotisserie and served in a variety of formats including tacos, burritos, bowls and salads. In addition to its core chicken offerings, El Pollo Loco menu items feature fresh-made salsas, guacamole, sides such as charro beans and fresh tortillas, as well as a selection of beverages and desserts.

Founded in 1975 in Guasave, Sinaloa, Mexico, by Juan Francisco Ochoa, the concept expanded into the United States in 1980 with its first U.S.