Biglari Capital CORP. purchased a new stake in El Pollo Loco Holdings, Inc. (NASDAQ:LOCO - Free Report) during the second quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The firm purchased 3,777,400 shares of the restaurant operator's stock, valued at approximately $64,064,704,000. El Pollo Loco accounts for 5.4% of Biglari Capital CORP.'s portfolio, making the stock its 3rd biggest holding. Biglari Capital CORP. owned about 12.41% of El Pollo Loco at the end of the most recent quarter.
Other large investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. BlackRock Inc. bought a new stake in shares of El Pollo Loco in the 2nd quarter valued at about $41,716,000. Tieton Capital Management LLC bought a new position in shares of El Pollo Loco during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $17,535,000. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. raised its stake in shares of El Pollo Loco by 93.9% during the 4th quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. now owns 1,037,293 shares of the restaurant operator's stock worth $10,850,000 after acquiring an additional 502,378 shares in the last quarter. Fund 1 Investments LLC lifted its position in El Pollo Loco by 193.4% during the fourth quarter. Fund 1 Investments LLC now owns 745,140 shares of the restaurant operator's stock valued at $7,794,000 after acquiring an additional 491,184 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Millennium Management LLC lifted its position in El Pollo Loco by 197.4% during the first quarter. Millennium Management LLC now owns 680,391 shares of the restaurant operator's stock valued at $7,008,000 after acquiring an additional 451,575 shares during the last quarter. 81.28% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.
Wall Street Analyst Weigh In
Several equities analysts have issued reports on LOCO shares. Freedom Capital raised shares of El Pollo Loco to a "strong-buy" rating in a report on Wednesday, July 1st. Benchmark increased their price objective on 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 cut El Pollo Loco from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Saturday, August 15th. Weiss Ratings upgraded El Pollo Loco from a "hold (c+)" rating to a "buy (b-)" rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 15th. Finally, DA Davidson upped their target price on El Pollo Loco from $15.00 to $17.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research report on Monday, August 10th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, three have issued a Buy rating and four have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $16.12.
View Our Latest Report on LOCO
Insider Activity at El Pollo Loco
In other news, major shareholder Sardar Biglari sold 80,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Wednesday, August 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $16.90, for a total value of $1,352,000.00. Following the sale, the insider owned 66,422 shares in the company, valued at $1,122,531.80. This represents a 54.64% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Over the last quarter, insiders have sold 558,803 shares of company stock valued at $9,427,504. 3.00% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.
El Pollo Loco Trading Down 1.3%
El Pollo Loco stock opened at $15.69 on Wednesday. The company has a quick ratio of 0.38, a current ratio of 0.41 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.10. El Pollo Loco Holdings, Inc. has a 52 week low of $8.98 and a 52 week high of $17.40. The company has a market capitalization of $477.45 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of 13.41 and a beta of 0.78. The stock has a 50-day moving average price of $16.11 and a 200 day moving average price of $14.17.
El Pollo Loco (NASDAQ:LOCO - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, August 6th. The restaurant operator reported $0.30 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.28 by $0.02. El Pollo Loco had a net margin of 6.96% and a return on equity of 10.87%. The company had revenue of $129.57 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $130.29 million. Sell-side analysts anticipate that El Pollo Loco Holdings, Inc. will post 0.99 EPS for the current year.
El Pollo Loco announced that its Board of Directors has authorized a stock repurchase program on Thursday, May 28th that authorizes the company to buyback $40.00 million in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization authorizes the restaurant operator to repurchase up to 9.5% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback programs are often a sign that the company's board believes its shares are undervalued.
El Pollo Loco Company Profile
(
Free Report)
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.
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