Q3 EPS Estimates for El Pollo Loco Lowered by William Blair

El Pollo Loco Holdings, Inc. (NASDAQ:LOCO) – Stock analysts at William Blair decreased their Q3 2024 EPS estimates for shares of El Pollo Loco in a note issued to investors on Wednesday, October 23rd. William Blair analyst S. Zackfia now expects that the restaurant operator will earn $0.17 per share for the quarter, down from their prior forecast of $0.18. The consensus estimate for El Pollo Loco’s current full-year earnings is $0.80 per share.

Other equities research analysts also recently issued reports about the stock. Truist Financial raised their target price on shares of El Pollo Loco from $12.00 to $13.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research note on Friday, August 2nd. StockNews.com raised El Pollo Loco from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday.

El Pollo Loco Stock Performance

Shares of LOCO opened at $12.76 on Friday. The company has a market cap of $381.91 million, a PE ratio of 14.84 and a beta of 1.49. The firm has a 50-day moving average of $13.45 and a 200-day moving average of $11.63. El Pollo Loco has a one year low of $8.11 and a one year high of $14.25. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.36, a current ratio of 0.35 and a quick ratio of 0.32.

El Pollo Loco (NASDAQ:LOCO) last released its earnings results on Thursday, August 1st. The restaurant operator reported $0.26 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.21 by $0.05. El Pollo Loco had a return on equity of 10.33% and a net margin of 5.76%. The business had revenue of $122.20 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $120.39 million. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company posted $0.23 earnings per share. El Pollo Loco’s revenue was up .6% on a year-over-year basis.

Insider Buying and Selling at El Pollo Loco

In related news, major shareholder Sardar Biglari purchased 21,325 shares of the stock in a transaction on Friday, August 16th. The shares were purchased at an average cost of $13.13 per share, with a total value of $279,997.25. Following the acquisition, the insider now directly owns 159,241 shares in the company, valued at $2,090,834.33. The trade was a 0.00 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The acquisition was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Insiders have purchased a total of 189,177 shares of company stock worth $2,483,158 over the last ninety days. Insiders own 1.90% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On El Pollo Loco

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the business. Vanguard Group Inc. increased its stake in El Pollo Loco by 5.4% during the 1st quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 1,323,373 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock worth $12,890,000 after acquiring an additional 67,368 shares during the period. Invenomic Capital Management LP grew its holdings in shares of El Pollo Loco by 197.2% during the 1st quarter. Invenomic Capital Management LP now owns 491,244 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock worth $4,785,000 after purchasing an additional 325,963 shares in the last quarter. LSV Asset Management bought a new position in shares of El Pollo Loco in the second quarter worth $4,407,000. First Eagle Investment Management LLC raised its stake in El Pollo Loco by 49.8% in the second quarter. First Eagle Investment Management LLC now owns 217,922 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock valued at $2,465,000 after purchasing an additional 72,424 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Rodgers Brothers Inc. lifted its position in El Pollo Loco by 2.7% during the first quarter. Rodgers Brothers Inc. now owns 212,725 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock worth $2,072,000 after purchasing an additional 5,500 shares during the period. 81.28% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

About El Pollo Loco

El Pollo Loco Holdings, Inc, through its subsidiary, El Pollo Loco, Inc, develops, franchises, licenses, and operates quick-service restaurants under the El Pollo Loco name. It operates and franchises restaurants located in California, Nevada, Arizona, Texas, Colorado, Utah, and Louisiana. It also licenses its brand to restaurants in the Philippines.