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

El Pollo Loco Holdings, Inc. (NASDAQ:LOCO) has earned a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” from the eight ratings firms that are currently covering the stock, MarketBeat.com reports. Five investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, two have assigned a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. The average 1 year price target among analysts that have covered the stock in the last year is $16.1250.

A number of analysts have recently weighed in on LOCO shares. Freedom Capital raised El Pollo Loco to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 1st. Weiss Ratings lowered El Pollo Loco from a “buy (b-)” rating to a “hold (c+)” rating in a research report on Wednesday, September 16th. Benchmark increased their price target on El Pollo Loco from $18.00 to $21.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, August 7th. Wall Street Zen downgraded shares of El Pollo Loco from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Saturday, August 15th. Finally, DA Davidson lifted their target price on shares of El Pollo Loco from $15.00 to $17.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Monday, August 10th.

El Pollo Loco Price Performance

LOCO opened at $14.41 on Wednesday. The business’s 50-day moving average is $15.55 and its two-hundred day moving average is $14.76. El Pollo Loco has a 1 year low of $8.98 and a 1 year high of $17.40. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.10, a current ratio of 0.41 and a quick ratio of 0.38. The firm has a market capitalization of $438.50 million, a PE ratio of 12.32 and a beta of 0.78.

El Pollo Loco (NASDAQ:LOCO) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, August 6th. The restaurant operator reported $0.30 EPS for the quarter, beating 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 business had revenue of $129.57 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $130.29 million. Research analysts anticipate that El Pollo Loco will post 0.99 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

El Pollo Loco declared that its Board of Directors has initiated a share buyback plan on Thursday, May 28th that authorizes the company to buyback $40.00 million in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization authorizes the restaurant operator to buy up to 9.5% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback plans are generally a sign that the company’s management believes its stock is undervalued.

Insider Activity

In other news, major shareholder Sardar Biglari sold 132,421 shares of El Pollo Loco stock in a transaction on Wednesday, July 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $17.27, for a total transaction of $2,286,910.67. Following the completion of the sale, the insider directly owned 3,644,979 shares in the company, valued at approximately $62,948,787.33. The trade was a 3.51% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Insiders have sold a total of 558,803 shares of company stock valued at $9,427,504 over the last three months. Company insiders own 3.00% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of El Pollo Loco

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Lazard Asset Management LLC lifted its holdings in shares of El Pollo Loco by 0.8% during the first quarter. Lazard Asset Management LLC now owns 110,667 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock worth $1,534,000 after purchasing an additional 895 shares during the period. Legal & General Group Plc purchased a new stake in El Pollo Loco in the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $48,000. Algert Global LLC grew its holdings in El Pollo Loco by 30.3% during the 2nd quarter. Algert Global LLC now owns 27,100 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock valued at $460,000 after buying an additional 6,300 shares during the last quarter. State of Wyoming acquired a new stake in El Pollo Loco during the 1st quarter valued at $88,000. Finally, Squarepoint Ops LLC increased its position in El Pollo Loco by 60.2% during the second quarter. Squarepoint Ops LLC now owns 18,927 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock worth $321,000 after buying an additional 7,113 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 81.28% of the company’s stock.

El Pollo Loco Company Profile

El Pollo Loco Holdings, Inc (NASDAQ: LOCO) operates and franchises restaurants specializing in Mexican-style fire-grilled chicken. The company’s menu includes citrus-marinated, flame-grilled chicken meals, burritos, tacos, quesadillas, salads, bowls, soups, side dishes and desserts. It also offers family meals, catering and various limited-time menu items.

Founded in Mexico in 1975, El Pollo Loco expanded into the United States in 1980 and has developed a brand centered on freshly prepared food and open-flame grilling.