Divisadero Street Capital Management LP Has $8.13 Million Holdings in El Pollo Loco Holdings, Inc. $LOCO

Divisadero Street Capital Management LP lowered its position in shares of El Pollo Loco Holdings, Inc. (NASDAQ:LOCO) by 32.0% during the third quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 837,650 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock after selling 393,437 shares during the period. Divisadero Street Capital Management LP owned about 2.80% of El Pollo Loco worth $8,125,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of the company. Tower Research Capital LLC TRC boosted its stake in shares of El Pollo Loco by 85.0% during the second 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 in the last quarter. BNP Paribas Financial Markets increased its stake in shares of El Pollo Loco by 89.5% in 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. EMC Capital Management bought a new position in El Pollo Loco in the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $72,000. Quinn Opportunity Partners LLC bought a new position in El Pollo Loco in the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $97,000. Finally, SG Americas Securities LLC acquired a new stake in El Pollo Loco during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $107,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 81.28% of the company’s stock.

El Pollo Loco Stock Up 16.9%

Shares of NASDAQ LOCO opened at $12.72 on Monday. The company’s 50 day moving average price is $10.86 and its 200-day moving average price is $10.50. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.22, a quick ratio of 0.38 and a current ratio of 0.12. El Pollo Loco Holdings, Inc. has a 52-week low of $8.29 and a 52-week high of $13.07. The company has a market capitalization of $380.96 million, a P/E ratio of 14.13 and a beta of 1.00.

El Pollo Loco (NASDAQ:LOCO) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, March 12th. The restaurant operator reported $0.25 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.21 by $0.04. The company had revenue of $123.52 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $122.18 million. El Pollo Loco had a net margin of 5.40% and a return on equity of 10.39%. Equities analysts forecast that El Pollo Loco Holdings, Inc. will post 0.83 earnings per share for the current year.

Trending Headlines about El Pollo Loco

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

• Positive Sentiment: Q4 results beat expectations — LOCO reported $0.25 EPS vs. $0.21 consensus and revenue slightly above estimates; management emphasized improving margins and profitability. Press Release
• Positive Sentiment: Same-store sales growth of ~2.1% in Q4, signaling steady demand in existing restaurants — supports revenue momentum and franchise economics. OCBJ Article
• Positive Sentiment: Company guidance and commentary point to faster expansion and pipeline — targeting 18–20 new restaurants in 2026 and seeing strong demand in new markets, which implies growth leverage over time. MSN Expansion Article
• Positive Sentiment: Operational and culinary investments highlighted as paying off — improvements to menu and operations support same-store sales and margin expansion. Yahoo Finance Article
• Positive Sentiment: Analyst upgrade: Benchmark upgraded LOCO to Buy with a $14 target, signaling bullish broker sentiment and providing upside vs. recent levels. Benzinga Upgrade
• Neutral Sentiment: Truist raised its price target to $13 but maintained a Hold rating — a modestly constructive move but not a directional endorsement. Benzinga Truist Note
• Neutral Sentiment: Full earnings call transcript and analyst write-ups provide detail for investors to parse unit-level trends, margin drivers and capital allocation — useful for validating the sustainability of the beat. Earnings Call Transcript

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research firms have weighed in on LOCO. William Blair reissued a “market perform” rating on shares of El Pollo Loco in a report on Friday. Truist Financial boosted their price objective on shares of El Pollo Loco from $12.00 to $13.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research note on Friday. Benchmark upgraded El Pollo Loco from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $14.00 price objective for the company in a report on Friday. Jefferies Financial Group raised their target price on El Pollo Loco from $12.00 to $13.50 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, December 15th. Finally, Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a “hold (c)” rating on shares of El Pollo Loco in a report on Wednesday, January 21st. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and five have assigned a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, El Pollo Loco presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $12.88.

El Pollo Loco Company Profile

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.