Insider Selling: El Pollo Loco (NASDAQ:LOCO) Major Shareholder Sells $217,288.50 in Stock

El Pollo Loco Holdings, Inc. (NASDAQ:LOCO) major shareholder Sardar Biglari sold 13,169 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, November 4th. The shares were sold at an average price of $16.50, for a total value of $217,288.50. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider owned 3,500,236 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $57,753,894. This represents a 0.37% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Major shareholders that own 10% or more of a company’s stock are required to disclose their sales and purchases with the SEC.

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

• On Thursday, November 5th, Sardar Biglari sold 5,984 shares of El Pollo Loco stock. The shares were sold at an average price of $16.50, for a total value of $98,736.00.
• On Friday, October 16th, Sardar Biglari sold 25,556 shares of El Pollo Loco stock. The stock was sold at an average price of $16.50, for a total value of $421,674.00.

El Pollo Loco Stock Performance

NASDAQ:LOCO opened at $14.88 on Monday. The stock has a market cap of $452.80 million, a P/E ratio of 12.94 and a beta of 0.85. The company has a current ratio of 0.15, a quick ratio of 0.38 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.10. The stock’s 50-day moving average is $15.01 and its 200-day moving average is $14.19. El Pollo Loco Holdings, Inc. has a 1-year low of $9.99 and a 1-year high of $17.40.

El Pollo Loco (NASDAQ:LOCO) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, November 5th. The restaurant operator reported $0.24 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, hitting analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.24. The firm had revenue of $126.31 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $127.03 million. El Pollo Loco had a return on equity of 10.35% and a net margin of 6.80%. Equities research analysts anticipate that El Pollo Loco Holdings, Inc. will post 0.97 earnings per share for the current year.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On El Pollo Loco

Institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Biglari Capital CORP. bought a new stake in El Pollo Loco in the 2nd quarter worth about $64,064,704. BlackRock Inc. purchased a new stake in El Pollo Loco in the 2nd quarter valued at about $41,716,000. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP increased its stake in El Pollo Loco by 0.6% in the 1st quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 2,013,373 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock valued at $27,905,000 after buying an additional 12,072 shares during the last quarter. Tieton Capital Management LLC bought a new position in shares of El Pollo Loco during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $17,535,000. Finally, Sei Investments Co. lifted its position in shares of El Pollo Loco by 203.8% during the 1st quarter. Sei Investments Co. now owns 635,468 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock worth $8,808,000 after buying an additional 426,320 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 81.28% of the company’s stock.

Key El Pollo Loco News

Here are the key news stories impacting El Pollo Loco this week:

• Positive Sentiment: System-wide same-store sales grew 5% in Q3, while digital sales accounted for 31% of system sales—signs of continued customer demand and digital-channel traction. El Pollo Loco: 3 Key Takeaways for Long-Term Investors
• Positive Sentiment: Management plans to open 25–30 restaurants in 2027 and projects approximately 4.5% comparable-sales growth for 2026, indicating continued expansion and sales momentum. El Pollo Loco expansion and sales outlook
• Neutral Sentiment: Q3 adjusted earnings were $0.24 per share, matching analysts’ consensus. El Pollo Loco Q3 earnings match estimates
• Negative Sentiment: Revenue was $126.31 million, slightly below the $127.03 million analyst estimate. EPS also fell from $0.27 in the year-ago quarter to $0.24, which may weigh on sentiment despite meeting expectations. El Pollo Loco Q3 earnings report

Analyst Ratings Changes

LOCO has been the subject of several research reports. Roth Capital assumed coverage on El Pollo Loco in a research note on Friday, October 9th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $22.00 target price for the company. DA Davidson boosted their target price on El Pollo Loco from $15.00 to $17.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Monday, August 10th. Weiss Ratings raised El Pollo Loco from a “hold (c+)” rating to a “buy (b-)” rating in a research note on Friday, October 2nd. Benchmark increased their price target on El Pollo Loco from $18.00 to $21.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, August 7th. Finally, Wall Street Zen cut El Pollo Loco from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Saturday, August 15th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, four have assigned a Buy rating and four have assigned a Hold rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $17.30.

El Pollo Loco Company Profile

El Pollo Loco Holdings, Inc (NASDAQ: LOCO) operates and franchises quick-service restaurants specializing in Mexican-inspired food and citrus-marinated, fire-grilled chicken. Its menu includes chicken meals, burritos, tacos, quesadillas, salads, bowls and family meals, along with a variety of sides, beverages and desserts.

The company was founded in 1975 in Guasave, Sinaloa, Mexico, and expanded into the United States in 1980 with its first restaurant in Los Angeles. El Pollo Loco primarily serves customers through restaurants in the western and southwestern United States, particularly in California, Arizona, Nevada, Colorado and Texas.