El Pollo Loco Holdings, Inc. (NASDAQ:LOCO) Receives Average Recommendation of "Hold" from Analysts

Key Points

• Analyst consensus: Seven analysts give El Pollo Loco a consensus "Hold" rating (five holds, two buys) with an average 12‑month target of $12.88.
• Quarterly beat: The company reported $0.25 EPS vs. $0.21 expected and $123.52M revenue vs. $122.18M, while analysts project about $0.83 EPS for the full year.
• Market and ownership snapshot: Shares opened at $13.95 with a $417.9M market cap and 52‑week range of $8.29–$14.50, and institutional investors own 81.28% of the stock with notable position increases from Millennium and AQR.

El Pollo Loco Holdings, Inc. (NASDAQ:LOCO - Get Free Report) has earned a consensus rating of "Hold" from the seven brokerages that are currently covering the stock, MarketBeat Ratings reports. Five investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold recommendation and two have given a buy recommendation to the company. The average 12 month target price among analysts that have updated their coverage on the stock in the last year is $12.8750.

A number of equities analysts have weighed in on LOCO shares. Weiss Ratings reissued a "hold (c)" rating on shares of El Pollo Loco in a research note on Wednesday, January 21st. Truist Financial lifted their target price on El Pollo Loco from $12.00 to $13.00 and gave the company a "hold" rating in a research report on Friday, March 13th. William Blair restated a "market perform" rating on shares of El Pollo Loco in a research report on Friday, March 13th. Benchmark upgraded El Pollo Loco from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating and set a $14.00 target price on the stock in a research report on Friday, March 13th. Finally, DA Davidson set a $11.00 target price on El Pollo Loco in a research report on Friday, March 13th.

El Pollo Loco Stock Performance

NASDAQ LOCO opened at $13.95 on Friday. The stock's fifty day moving average is $12.45 and its two-hundred day moving average is $11.16. The firm has a market capitalization of $417.94 million, a P/E ratio of 15.50 and a beta of 0.88. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.18, a quick ratio of 0.30 and a current ratio of 0.32. El Pollo Loco has a fifty-two week low of $8.29 and a fifty-two week high of $14.50.

El Pollo Loco (NASDAQ:LOCO - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, March 12th. The restaurant operator reported $0.25 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $0.21 by $0.04. The company had revenue of $123.52 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $122.18 million. El Pollo Loco had a return on equity of 10.39% and a net margin of 5.40%. On average, research analysts anticipate that El Pollo Loco will post 0.83 earnings per share for the current year.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On El Pollo Loco

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in LOCO. AQR Capital Management LLC raised its position in El Pollo Loco by 4.8% in the first quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 287,143 shares of the restaurant operator's stock valued at $2,958,000 after purchasing an additional 13,095 shares during the period. Millennium Management LLC raised its position in El Pollo Loco by 197.4% in the first quarter. Millennium Management LLC now owns 680,391 shares of the restaurant operator's stock valued at $7,008,000 after purchasing an additional 451,575 shares during the period. Empowered Funds LLC raised its position in El Pollo Loco by 7.4% in the first quarter. Empowered Funds LLC now owns 188,519 shares of the restaurant operator's stock valued at $1,942,000 after purchasing an additional 12,964 shares during the period. Jane Street Group LLC purchased a new stake in El Pollo Loco in the first quarter valued at $221,000. Finally, Creative Planning purchased a new stake in El Pollo Loco in the second quarter valued at $240,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 81.28% of the company's stock.

About El Pollo Loco

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.

This instant news alert was generated by narrative science technology and financial data from MarketBeat in order to provide readers with the fastest reporting and unbiased coverage. Please send any questions or comments about this story to contact@marketbeat.com.