El Pollo Loco Holdings, Inc. (NASDAQ:LOCO) Given Average Recommendation of “Hold” by Brokerages

El Pollo Loco Holdings, Inc. (NASDAQ:LOCO) has been given a consensus recommendation of “Hold” by the seven brokerages that are presently covering the company, MarketBeat Ratings reports. Five equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold recommendation and two have given a buy recommendation to the company. The average 1 year price target among brokerages that have issued a report on the stock in the last year is $12.8750.

A number of analysts have issued reports on the stock. Benchmark raised shares of El Pollo Loco from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $14.00 price objective for the company in a report on Friday, March 13th. William Blair reaffirmed a “market perform” rating on shares of El Pollo Loco in a report on Friday, March 13th. Weiss Ratings reiterated a “hold (c)” rating on shares of El Pollo Loco in a research report on Wednesday, January 21st. Zacks Research cut El Pollo Loco from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Tuesday, December 30th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group increased their price target on El Pollo Loco from $12.00 to $13.50 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, December 15th.

El Pollo Loco Price Performance

LOCO stock opened at $13.81 on Wednesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.18, a current ratio of 0.32 and a quick ratio of 0.30. The stock has a market capitalization of $413.75 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of 15.34 and a beta of 1.00. The business’s fifty day moving average price is $11.46 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $10.75. 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) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, March 12th. The restaurant operator reported $0.25 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.21 by $0.04. El Pollo Loco had a net margin of 5.40% and a return on equity of 10.39%. The company had revenue of $123.52 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $122.18 million. On average, equities analysts anticipate that El Pollo Loco will post 0.83 earnings per share for the current year.

Institutional Trading of El Pollo Loco

Several large investors have recently modified their holdings of LOCO. Tower Research Capital LLC TRC raised its stake in El Pollo Loco by 85.0% in the second quarter. Tower Research Capital LLC TRC now owns 3,862 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock valued at $43,000 after purchasing an additional 1,774 shares in the last quarter. Kestra Advisory Services LLC acquired a new stake in El Pollo Loco during the fourth quarter worth about $50,000. BNP Paribas Financial Markets increased its holdings in El Pollo Loco by 89.5% in the 3rd quarter. BNP Paribas Financial Markets now owns 5,277 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock valued at $51,000 after buying an additional 2,493 shares during the period. Quinn Opportunity Partners LLC acquired a new position in shares of El Pollo Loco in the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $97,000. Finally, Diversified Trust Co. acquired a new position in shares of El Pollo Loco in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $106,000. 81.28% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

El Pollo Loco Company Profile

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.