El Pollo Loco Holdings, Inc. (NASDAQ:LOCO) Stock Has Average Price Target of $17.30

Shares of El Pollo Loco Holdings, Inc. (NASDAQ:LOCO) have received a consensus recommendation of “Moderate Buy” from the nine analysts that are currently covering the stock, MarketBeat.com reports. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, four have given a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. The average 1 year price target among brokerages that have covered the stock in the last year is $17.30.

Several equities research analysts have recently weighed in on LOCO shares. Weiss Ratings raised El Pollo Loco from a “hold (c+)” rating to a “buy (b-)” rating in a report on Friday, October 2nd. Benchmark lifted their target price on shares of El Pollo Loco from $18.00 to $21.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, August 7th. Wall Street Zen downgraded shares of El Pollo Loco from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Saturday, August 15th. DA Davidson lifted their target price on El Pollo Loco from $15.00 to $17.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Monday, August 10th. Finally, Roth Capital started coverage on shares of El Pollo Loco in a research report on Friday, October 9th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $22.00 price objective for the company.

Insider Activity

In other news, major shareholder Sardar Biglari sold 25,556 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, October 16th. The stock was sold at an average price of $16.50, for a total value of $421,674.00. Following the completion of the sale, the insider directly owned 3,513,405 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $57,971,182.50. This trade represents a 0.72% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Over the last ninety days, insiders sold 44,709 shares of company stock worth $737,698. Corporate insiders own 3.00% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On El Pollo Loco

Several institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in LOCO. Biglari Capital CORP. purchased a new position in shares of El Pollo Loco in the 2nd quarter valued at about $64,064,704. BlackRock Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of El Pollo Loco in the second quarter valued at about $41,716,000. Tieton Capital Management LLC purchased a new stake in El Pollo Loco during the second quarter worth about $17,535,000. Biglari Sardar purchased a new stake in El Pollo Loco during the second quarter worth about $8,297,629. Finally, Sei Investments Co. boosted its holdings in El Pollo Loco by 203.8% during the first 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. 81.28% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

El Pollo Loco Stock Performance

Shares of El Pollo Loco stock opened at $15.19 on Thursday. The firm has a market capitalization of $459.04 million, a P/E ratio of 14.46 and a beta of 0.85. El Pollo Loco has a 52 week low of $9.99 and a 52 week high of $17.40. The company has a quick ratio of 0.38, a current ratio of 0.29 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.08. The firm’s 50 day moving average is $15.02 and its two-hundred day moving average is $14.26.

El Pollo Loco (NASDAQ:LOCO) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, November 5th. The restaurant operator reported $0.24 earnings per share for the quarter, hitting the consensus estimate of $0.24. The business had revenue of $126.31 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $127.03 million. El Pollo Loco had a net margin of 6.80% and a return on equity of 10.35%. Research analysts forecast that El Pollo Loco will post 0.97 EPS for the current fiscal year.

About El Pollo Loco

El Pollo Loco, Inc. operates and franchises quick-service restaurants specializing in Mexican-inspired food centered on citrus-marinated chicken flame-grilled over an open fire. Its menu includes chicken meals, tacos, burritos, bowls, salads and side dishes. The company traces its roots to a restaurant business in Mexico and expanded into the United States in 1980. Its restaurants primarily serve customers in the western and southwestern United States, including California, Arizona, Nevada and Texas.