Portillo’s (NASDAQ:PTLO) Upgraded by Robert W. Baird to “Hold” Rating

Portillo’s (NASDAQ:PTLO) was upgraded by investment analysts at Robert W. Baird to a “hold” rating in a report released on Monday,Zacks.com reports.

A number of other equities analysts also recently commented on PTLO. Weiss Ratings restated a “sell (d)” rating on shares of Portillo’s in a research note on Monday, August 3rd. Morgan Stanley dropped their target price on Portillo’s from $7.00 to $6.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, May 6th. Piper Sandler decreased their price target on Portillo’s from $8.00 to $6.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, May 6th. Stephens reiterated an “equal weight” rating and set a $5.00 price objective on shares of Portillo’s in a research note on Thursday, August 6th. Finally, Guggenheim cut shares of Portillo’s from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating in a research note on Thursday, May 7th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, ten have assigned a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, Portillo’s presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $5.92.

Portillo’s Stock Down 2.6%

Shares of Portillo’s stock opened at $4.85 on Monday. The firm has a market cap of $368.31 million, a PE ratio of 26.95, a P/E/G ratio of 1.08 and a beta of 1.56. The business’s 50 day simple moving average is $4.63 and its 200 day simple moving average is $4.94. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.46, a quick ratio of 0.20 and a current ratio of 0.26. Portillo’s has a 52-week low of $3.78 and a 52-week high of $7.18.

Portillo’s (NASDAQ:PTLO) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, August 5th. The company reported $0.09 earnings per share for the quarter, hitting analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.09. Portillo’s had a return on equity of 2.78% and a net margin of 1.85%.The firm had revenue of $198.95 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $199.22 million. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $0.12 EPS. The business’s revenue was up 5.6% on a year-over-year basis. On average, analysts predict that Portillo’s will post 0.19 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Activity

In other Portillo’s news, Director Eugene I. Lee, Jr. acquired 65,355 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, August 12th. The stock was bought at an average cost of $4.59 per share, with a total value of $299,979.45. Following the completion of the transaction, the director directly owned 551,770 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,532,624.30. This represents a 13.44% increase in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. 6.34% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Portillo’s

Several hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Royal Bank of Canada boosted its position in Portillo’s by 731.1% during the first quarter. Royal Bank of Canada now owns 156,710 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,864,000 after purchasing an additional 137,854 shares during the period. AQR Capital Management LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Portillo’s during the 1st quarter worth about $318,000. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. boosted its holdings in shares of Portillo’s by 5.9% during the 1st quarter. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. now owns 32,550 shares of the company’s stock worth $387,000 after buying an additional 1,808 shares during the period. Cetera Investment Advisers acquired a new position in Portillo’s in the 2nd quarter valued at about $145,000. Finally, Legal & General Group Plc raised its holdings in Portillo’s by 45.4% in the 2nd quarter. Legal & General Group Plc now owns 74,056 shares of the company’s stock valued at $864,000 after acquiring an additional 23,115 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 98.34% of the company’s stock.

About Portillo’s

Portillo’s, Inc operates a fast‐casual restaurant chain best known for its Chicago‐style menu, featuring Italian beef sandwiches, Chicago‐style hot dogs, char‐grilled burgers, salads, crinkle‐cut fries and hand‐spun milkshakes. In addition to its signature sandwiches and dogs, the company offers a selection of desserts—including its famous chocolate cake and frozen custard—as well as catering services designed to bring its Midwestern flavors to corporate and social events.

The company was founded in 1963 by Dick Portillo, who opened the first Portillo’s in Villa Park, Illinois.