Samuel N. Borgese Sells 4,643 Shares of El Pollo Loco Holdings, Inc. (NASDAQ:LOCO) Stock

El Pollo Loco Holdings, Inc. (NASDAQ:LOCO) Director Samuel N. Borgese sold 4,643 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, May 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $9.30, for a total transaction of $43,179.90. Following the completion of the sale, the director now owns 34,222 shares in the company, valued at $318,264.60. This represents a 11.95 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link.

El Pollo Loco Stock Performance

Shares of LOCO opened at $9.88 on Thursday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.30, a quick ratio of 0.29 and a current ratio of 0.31. The company has a market capitalization of $294.20 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of 12.51 and a beta of 1.35. The company’s 50 day simple moving average is $10.99 and its 200 day simple moving average is $11.90. El Pollo Loco Holdings, Inc. has a 1 year low of $8.17 and a 1 year high of $14.25.

El Pollo Loco (NASDAQ:LOCO) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, March 6th. The restaurant operator reported $0.20 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.14 by $0.06. The business had revenue of $114.28 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $113.19 million. El Pollo Loco had a net margin of 5.11% and a return on equity of 10.34%. On average, sell-side analysts predict that El Pollo Loco Holdings, Inc. will post 0.83 EPS for the current year.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

LOCO has been the topic of several research reports. Craig Hallum initiated coverage on shares of El Pollo Loco in a research report on Tuesday, March 11th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $18.00 price target on the stock. Benchmark reiterated a “hold” rating on shares of El Pollo Loco in a research report on Monday, March 10th. Finally, StockNews.com upgraded shares of El Pollo Loco from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On El Pollo Loco

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the company. GAMMA Investing LLC raised its stake in El Pollo Loco by 4,840.7% during the first quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 2,668 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock worth $259,000 after purchasing an additional 2,614 shares during the period. Universal Beteiligungs und Servicegesellschaft mbH purchased a new position in El Pollo Loco during the fourth quarter worth approximately $1,146,000. PharVision Advisers LLC purchased a new position in El Pollo Loco during the fourth quarter worth approximately $320,000. Squarepoint Ops LLC purchased a new position in El Pollo Loco during the fourth quarter worth approximately $165,000. Finally, Sherbrooke Park Advisers LLC purchased a new position in El Pollo Loco during the fourth quarter worth approximately $226,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 81.28% of the company’s stock.

El Pollo Loco Company Profile

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.