William Blair Lowers Earnings Estimates for El Pollo Loco

El Pollo Loco Holdings, Inc. (NASDAQ:LOCO) – Equities research analysts at William Blair lowered their FY2024 earnings per share estimates for El Pollo Loco in a research note issued to investors on Wednesday, October 23rd. William Blair analyst S. Zackfia now forecasts that the restaurant operator will post earnings of $0.77 per share for the year, down from their previous estimate of $0.79. The consensus estimate for El Pollo Loco’s current full-year earnings is $0.80 per share. William Blair also issued estimates for El Pollo Loco’s Q4 2024 earnings at $0.12 EPS.

LOCO has been the subject of a number of other research reports. StockNews.com upgraded El Pollo Loco from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 23rd. Truist Financial increased their price objective on El Pollo Loco from $12.00 to $13.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a report on Friday, August 2nd.

El Pollo Loco Stock Performance

Shares of LOCO opened at $12.55 on Monday. El Pollo Loco has a one year low of $8.11 and a one year high of $14.25. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $13.45 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $11.65. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.36, a current ratio of 0.35 and a quick ratio of 0.32. The firm has a market capitalization of $390.31 million, a PE ratio of 15.47 and a beta of 1.49.

El Pollo Loco (NASDAQ:LOCO) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, August 1st. The restaurant operator reported $0.26 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.21 by $0.05. El Pollo Loco had a net margin of 5.76% and a return on equity of 10.33%. The firm had revenue of $122.20 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $120.39 million. During the same period last year, the company posted $0.23 EPS. The company’s quarterly revenue was up .6% compared to the same quarter last year.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On El Pollo Loco

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Vanguard Group Inc. raised its holdings in El Pollo Loco by 5.4% in the 1st quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 1,323,373 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock worth $12,890,000 after acquiring an additional 67,368 shares during the last quarter. Invenomic Capital Management LP lifted its holdings in shares of El Pollo Loco by 197.2% during the first quarter. Invenomic Capital Management LP now owns 491,244 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock valued at $4,785,000 after purchasing an additional 325,963 shares in the last quarter. LSV Asset Management purchased a new stake in shares of El Pollo Loco during the second quarter valued at $4,407,000. First Eagle Investment Management LLC increased its holdings in El Pollo Loco by 49.8% in the 2nd quarter. First Eagle Investment Management LLC now owns 217,922 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock worth $2,465,000 after buying an additional 72,424 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Rodgers Brothers Inc. raised its position in El Pollo Loco by 2.7% in the 1st quarter. Rodgers Brothers Inc. now owns 212,725 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock worth $2,072,000 after buying an additional 5,500 shares during the last quarter. 81.28% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other El Pollo Loco news, major shareholder Sardar Biglari bought 62,362 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, August 14th. The stock was purchased at an average cost of $12.47 per share, for a total transaction of $777,654.14. Following the completion of the acquisition, the insider now owns 87,362 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,089,404.14. This trade represents a 200.00 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Insiders have acquired 189,177 shares of company stock valued at $2,483,158 over the last quarter. Corporate insiders own 1.90% of the company’s stock.

About El Pollo Loco

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.