Corient Private Wealth LLC Invests $945,000 in El Pollo Loco Holdings, Inc. $LOCO

Corient Private Wealth LLC bought a new stake in El Pollo Loco Holdings, Inc. (NASDAQ:LOCO) in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The firm bought 90,318 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock, valued at approximately $945,000.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Vanguard Group Inc. raised its stake in El Pollo Loco by 1.2% during the 3rd quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 1,400,032 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock worth $13,580,000 after buying an additional 16,867 shares during the period. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. increased its holdings in shares of El Pollo Loco by 93.9% during the fourth quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. now owns 1,037,293 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock valued at $10,850,000 after acquiring an additional 502,378 shares in the last quarter. Fund 1 Investments LLC raised its position in shares of El Pollo Loco by 193.4% during the fourth quarter. Fund 1 Investments LLC now owns 745,140 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock worth $7,794,000 after purchasing an additional 491,184 shares during the period. Millennium Management LLC lifted its holdings in shares of El Pollo Loco by 197.4% in the 1st quarter. Millennium Management LLC now owns 680,391 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock worth $7,008,000 after purchasing an additional 451,575 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Geode Capital Management LLC lifted its holdings in shares of El Pollo Loco by 4.1% in the 4th quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 653,977 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock worth $6,842,000 after purchasing an additional 26,027 shares in the last quarter. 81.28% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Insider Transactions at El Pollo Loco

In other news, major shareholder Sardar Biglari sold 100,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Monday, June 29th. The shares were sold at an average price of $16.58, for a total value of $1,658,000.00. Following the completion of the sale, the insider owned 3,800,000 shares in the company, valued at $63,004,000. This represents a 2.56% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Over the last quarter, insiders have sold 222,600 shares of company stock worth $3,715,166. 3.00% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Analyst Ratings Changes

LOCO has been the subject of several research reports. Benchmark lifted their price target on shares of El Pollo Loco from $14.00 to $18.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, May 8th. William Blair restated a “market perform” rating on shares of El Pollo Loco in a report on Friday, March 13th. Wall Street Zen raised shares of El Pollo Loco from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Saturday, March 21st. Weiss Ratings cut shares of El Pollo Loco from a “buy (b-)” rating to a “hold (c+)” rating in a report on Tuesday. Finally, Truist Financial boosted their target price on shares of El Pollo Loco from $12.00 to $13.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research report on Friday, March 13th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and five have assigned a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $14.88.

Key Headlines Impacting El Pollo Loco

Here are the key news stories impacting El Pollo Loco this week:

• Positive Sentiment: El Pollo Loco is expanding its restaurant footprint, with first-time openings in Idaho and a new location in Lubbock, Texas, plus opening-day promotions that could help raise brand awareness and drive sales. El Pollo Loco Opens in Idaho for First Time
• Positive Sentiment: Freedom Capital reportedly issued bullish ratings on El Pollo Loco, adding to the view that the stock may still have upside after its recent operating improvement. Dutch Bros, First Watch, and El Pollo Loco land bull ratings from Freedom Capital
• Neutral Sentiment: Recent commentary is questioning how to trade LOCO after first-quarter earnings, but the company had already posted a solid beat on EPS and revenue in its last report, so the market may be weighing valuation rather than fundamentals alone. El Pollo Loco (LOCO): Buy, sell, or hold post Q1 earnings?
• Neutral Sentiment: The company’s recent earnings and buyback authorization remain supportive longer-term signals, including a 40 million dollar repurchase plan that may help offset share-price weakness. Winner Winner, Chicken Dinner: El Pollo Loco’s Turnaround Recipe
• Negative Sentiment: Major shareholder Sardar Biglari sold additional shares this week, following earlier large sales, which can pressure sentiment because investors often read insider selling as a sign of reduced confidence or profit-taking. Insider Selling: El Pollo Loco (NASDAQ:LOCO) Major Shareholder Sells 22,600 Shares

El Pollo Loco Stock Down 3.0%

LOCO stock opened at $16.68 on Friday. The firm has a market capitalization of $507.91 million, a PE ratio of 17.02 and a beta of 0.78. The company has a quick ratio of 0.32, a current ratio of 0.34 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.15. El Pollo Loco Holdings, Inc. has a twelve month low of $8.98 and a twelve month high of $17.40. The stock’s 50 day moving average is $14.60 and its 200-day moving average is $12.76.

El Pollo Loco (NASDAQ:LOCO) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, May 7th. The restaurant operator reported $0.28 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.22 by $0.06. The business had revenue of $126.18 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $122.02 million. El Pollo Loco had a return on equity of 11.04% and a net margin of 5.87%. Sell-side analysts expect that El Pollo Loco Holdings, Inc. will post 0.95 EPS for the current fiscal year.

El Pollo Loco declared that its board has authorized a stock repurchase program on Thursday, May 28th that permits the company to buyback $40.00 million in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization permits the restaurant operator to purchase up to 9.5% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback programs are usually an indication that the company’s board believes its shares are undervalued.

About El Pollo Loco

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.