Bank of America Corp DE Grows Stake in El Pollo Loco Holdings, Inc. (NASDAQ:LOCO)

Bank of America Corp DE boosted its stake in El Pollo Loco Holdings, Inc. (NASDAQ:LOCO - Free Report) by 55.5% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 244,701 shares of the restaurant operator's stock after purchasing an additional 87,287 shares during the period. Bank of America Corp DE owned about 0.82% of El Pollo Loco worth $2,824,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other large investors have also bought and sold shares of the company. Quantbot Technologies LP purchased a new position in shares of El Pollo Loco during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $70,000. Quarry LP increased its stake in shares of El Pollo Loco by 235.6% during the fourth quarter. Quarry LP now owns 7,389 shares of the restaurant operator's stock valued at $85,000 after buying an additional 5,187 shares during the period. Aquatic Capital Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of El Pollo Loco during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $107,000. SG Americas Securities LLC increased its stake in shares of El Pollo Loco by 22.3% during the fourth quarter. SG Americas Securities LLC now owns 10,713 shares of the restaurant operator's stock valued at $124,000 after buying an additional 1,954 shares during the period. Finally, Olympiad Research LP purchased a new position in shares of El Pollo Loco during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $130,000. 81.28% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research firms have recently issued reports on LOCO. Wall Street Zen cut El Pollo Loco from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Friday, May 2nd. Benchmark restated a "hold" rating on shares of El Pollo Loco in a research report on Monday, March 10th. Finally, Craig Hallum initiated coverage on El Pollo Loco in a research report on Tuesday, March 11th. They set a "buy" rating and a $18.00 price target on the stock.

El Pollo Loco Stock Up 2.6%

Shares of NASDAQ LOCO traded up $0.27 during mid-day trading on Tuesday, hitting $10.68. 157,613 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 250,431. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.30, a quick ratio of 0.29 and a current ratio of 0.31. El Pollo Loco Holdings, Inc. has a 52 week low of $8.29 and a 52 week high of $14.25. The company has a market cap of $320.96 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of 13.52 and a beta of 1.11. The stock has a fifty day moving average price of $9.60 and a 200-day moving average price of $10.93.

El Pollo Loco (NASDAQ:LOCO - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, May 1st. The restaurant operator reported $0.19 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.20 by ($0.01). El Pollo Loco had a net margin of 5.11% and a return on equity of 10.34%. The firm had revenue of $119.18 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $118.20 million. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $0.22 earnings per share. The company's revenue for the quarter was up 2.6% compared to the same quarter last year. Research analysts anticipate that El Pollo Loco Holdings, Inc. will post 0.83 EPS for the current year.

El Pollo Loco 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.