Portillo's (NASDAQ:PTLO) Reaches New 1-Year High Following Analyst Upgrade

Key Points

• Portillo’s reached a new 52-week high after Wall Street Zen upgraded the stock from sell to hold; shares rose from a prior close of $6.64 to as high as $7.02.
• Analyst sentiment remains cautious overall: two analysts rate the stock a buy, eight a hold, and one a sell, with a consensus price target of $6.09.
• Latest quarterly results topped estimates, with earnings of $0.06 per share versus $0.03 expected and revenue of $194.07 million, up 7% year over year.

Portillo's Inc. (NASDAQ:PTLO - Get Free Report)'s share price hit a new 52-week high during trading on Monday after Wall Street Zen upgraded the stock from a sell rating to a hold rating. The stock traded as high as $7.02 and last traded at $6.9750, with a volume of 852,184 shares trading hands. The stock had previously closed at $6.64.

Other analysts have also recently issued reports about the company. Robert W. Baird upgraded Portillo's to a "hold" rating in a research report on Monday, August 24th. DA Davidson upped their price target on Portillo's from $5.00 to $7.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research report on Friday. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a "sell (d)" rating on shares of Portillo's in a research note on Friday, October 30th. Stephens raised their target price on Portillo's from $5.00 to $7.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a report on Friday. Finally, UBS Group lowered their price target on shares of Portillo's from $5.50 to $4.50 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a report on Friday, October 9th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, eight have given a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $6.09.

Insider Transactions at Portillo's

In other Portillo's news, Director I Jr bought 65,355 shares of Portillo's stock in a transaction on Wednesday, August 12th. The stock was bought at an average price of $4.59 per share, with a total value of $299,979.45. Following the completion of the acquisition, the director owned 551,770 shares in the company, valued at $2,532,624.30. The trade was a 13.44% increase in their ownership of the stock. The purchase was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Insiders own 6.34% of the company's stock.

Institutional Trading of Portillo's

Large investors have recently modified their holdings of the business. Essential Partners LLC boosted its position in Portillo's by 83,350.0% during the first quarter. Essential Partners LLC now owns 5,007 shares of the company's stock worth $26,000 after acquiring an additional 5,001 shares during the last quarter. Kestra Advisory Services LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Portillo's during the 3rd quarter worth about $68,000. Russell Investments Group Ltd. increased its position in shares of Portillo's by 283.1% in the second quarter. Russell Investments Group Ltd. now owns 36,556 shares of the company's stock worth $173,000 after acquiring an additional 27,014 shares in the last quarter. Deutsche Bank AG lifted its stake in shares of Portillo's by 29.5% during the second quarter. Deutsche Bank AG now owns 65,667 shares of the company's stock worth $311,000 after purchasing an additional 14,973 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Sei Investments Co. boosted its holdings in Portillo's by 132.1% in the 1st quarter. Sei Investments Co. now owns 70,622 shares of the company's stock worth $374,000 after acquiring an additional 40,200 shares during the period. 98.34% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Portillo's Price Performance

The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.46, a quick ratio of 0.20 and a current ratio of 0.26. The business's fifty day simple moving average is $4.31 and its 200 day simple moving average is $4.83. The stock has a market cap of $530.46 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of 31.84, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 5.86 and a beta of 1.51.

Portillo's (NASDAQ:PTLO - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, November 5th. The company reported $0.06 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $0.03 by $0.03. Portillo's had a return on equity of 3.41% and a net margin of 2.25%. The business had revenue of $194.07 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $193.18 million. During the same period last year, the firm earned $0.02 earnings per share. The company's revenue for the quarter was up 7.0% compared to the same quarter last year. Research analysts predict that Portillo's Inc. will post 0.19 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Portillo's Company Profile

Portillo's, Inc operates a chain of fast-casual restaurants known for Chicago-style food. Its menu features Italian beef and Italian sausage sandwiches, Chicago-style hot dogs, hamburgers, chicken sandwiches, salads, french fries, shakes and other desserts.

The company traces its origins to 1963, when Dick Portillo opened a small hot dog stand called The Dog House in Villa Park, Illinois. Portillo's has since expanded from its Chicago-area roots into a multi-state restaurant business, with locations primarily in the United States.

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.