Nuveen Asset Management LLC Increases Holdings in El Pollo Loco Holdings, Inc. (NASDAQ:LOCO)

Nuveen Asset Management LLC grew its position in shares of El Pollo Loco Holdings, Inc. (NASDAQ:LOCO - Free Report) by 17.4% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 342,570 shares of the restaurant operator's stock after purchasing an additional 50,765 shares during the period. Nuveen Asset Management LLC owned about 1.14% of El Pollo Loco worth $3,953,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted its stake in El Pollo Loco by 11.0% during the fourth quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 456,432 shares of the restaurant operator's stock worth $5,267,000 after purchasing an additional 45,134 shares during the last quarter. First Eagle Investment Management LLC lifted its stake in El Pollo Loco by 54.0% during the fourth quarter. First Eagle Investment Management LLC now owns 453,422 shares of the restaurant operator's stock worth $5,232,000 after purchasing an additional 159,000 shares during the last quarter. Janney Montgomery Scott LLC lifted its stake in El Pollo Loco by 89.6% during the fourth quarter. Janney Montgomery Scott LLC now owns 84,247 shares of the restaurant operator's stock worth $972,000 after purchasing an additional 39,824 shares during the last quarter. AlphaQuest LLC lifted its stake in El Pollo Loco by 17,165.8% during the fourth quarter. AlphaQuest LLC now owns 27,798 shares of the restaurant operator's stock worth $321,000 after purchasing an additional 27,637 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Prudential Financial Inc. lifted its stake in El Pollo Loco by 332.2% during the fourth quarter. Prudential Financial Inc. now owns 289,739 shares of the restaurant operator's stock worth $3,344,000 after purchasing an additional 222,704 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 81.28% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

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

El Pollo Loco Trading Up 1.0%

Shares of NASDAQ LOCO traded up $0.11 during midday trading on Wednesday, reaching $10.81. The company had a trading volume of 612,047 shares, compared to its average volume of 251,938. El Pollo Loco Holdings, Inc. has a one year low of $8.29 and a one year high of $14.25. The company has a quick ratio of 0.29, a current ratio of 0.31 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.30. The firm's fifty day moving average price is $9.60 and its 200-day moving average price is $10.93. The stock has a market cap of $324.86 million, a PE ratio of 13.68 and a beta of 1.11.

El Pollo Loco (NASDAQ:LOCO - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Thursday, May 1st. The restaurant operator reported $0.19 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates 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 company had revenue of $119.18 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $118.20 million. During the same period last year, the firm posted $0.22 EPS. The company's revenue was up 2.6% on a year-over-year basis. On average, equities research analysts anticipate that El Pollo Loco Holdings, Inc. will post 0.83 earnings per share 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.