Key Points
- Major shareholder Sardar Biglari sold 6,611 El Pollo Loco shares for approximately $110,470, reducing his direct stake by 5.36% to 116,695 shares. The sale follows several other disposals, including 75,000 shares on July 13 and 132,421 shares on July 1.
- LOCO shares opened at $16.46, near their 52-week high of $17.40, with a market capitalization of about $501 million and a P/E ratio of 16.80.
- El Pollo Loco exceeded quarterly earnings and revenue estimates, while its board authorized a $40 million share-repurchase program. Analysts maintain a “Moderate Buy” consensus, though their average price target of $14.88 is below the current share price.
El Pollo Loco Holdings, Inc. (NASDAQ:LOCO - Get Free Report) major shareholder Sardar Biglari sold 6,611 shares of the stock in a transaction on Wednesday, July 29th. The stock was sold at an average price of $16.71, for a total transaction of $110,469.81. Following the sale, the insider directly owned 116,695 shares of the company's stock, valued at $1,949,973.45. This represents a 5.36% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Large shareholders that own 10% or more of a company's shares are required to disclose their transactions with the SEC.
Sardar Biglari also recently made the following trade(s):
- On Thursday, July 30th, Sardar Biglari sold 546 shares of El Pollo Loco stock. The stock was sold at an average price of $16.70, for a total transaction of $9,118.20.
- On Friday, July 17th, Sardar Biglari sold 11,000 shares of El Pollo Loco stock. The shares were sold at an average price of $16.71, for a total transaction of $183,810.00.
- On Monday, July 13th, Sardar Biglari sold 75,000 shares of El Pollo Loco stock. The stock was sold at an average price of $16.74, for a total transaction of $1,255,500.00.
- On Thursday, July 2nd, Sardar Biglari sold 9,525 shares of El Pollo Loco stock. The stock was sold at an average price of $16.92, for a total value of $161,163.00.
- On Wednesday, July 1st, Sardar Biglari sold 132,421 shares of El Pollo Loco stock. The stock was sold at an average price of $17.27, for a total value of $2,286,910.67.
- On Tuesday, June 30th, Sardar Biglari sold 22,600 shares of El Pollo Loco stock. The shares were sold at an average price of $16.91, for a total value of $382,166.00.
- On Monday, June 29th, Sardar Biglari sold 100,000 shares of El Pollo Loco stock. The shares were sold at an average price of $16.58, for a total value of $1,658,000.00.
- On Friday, June 26th, Sardar Biglari sold 100,000 shares of El Pollo Loco stock. The shares were sold at an average price of $16.75, for a total value of $1,675,000.00.
El Pollo Loco Stock Down 0.1%
LOCO stock opened at $16.46 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.15, a current ratio of 0.34 and a quick ratio of 0.32. The stock has a market capitalization of $501.21 million, a P/E ratio of 16.80 and a beta of 0.78. The business has a 50-day moving average of $15.72 and a 200-day moving average of $13.56. El Pollo Loco Holdings, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $8.98 and a fifty-two week high of $17.40.
El Pollo Loco (NASDAQ:LOCO - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, May 7th. The restaurant operator reported $0.28 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $0.22 by $0.06. El Pollo Loco had a return on equity of 11.04% and a net margin of 5.87%.The business had revenue of $126.18 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $122.02 million. On average, sell-side analysts anticipate that El Pollo Loco Holdings, Inc. will post 0.95 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.
El Pollo Loco declared that its board has authorized a share repurchase program on Thursday, May 28th that permits the company to buyback $40.00 million in shares. This buyback authorization permits the restaurant operator to buy up to 9.5% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback programs are generally an indication that the company's leadership believes its stock is undervalued.
Analysts Set New Price Targets
A number of analysts have recently issued reports on LOCO shares. Benchmark lifted their price objective on shares of El Pollo Loco from $14.00 to $18.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Friday, May 8th. DA Davidson increased their target price on shares of El Pollo Loco from $13.00 to $15.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a report on Monday, May 11th. Freedom Capital raised shares of El Pollo Loco to a "strong-buy" rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 1st. Finally, Weiss Ratings raised shares of El Pollo Loco from a "hold (c+)" rating to a "buy (b-)" rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 15th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, three have assigned a Buy rating and four have issued a Hold rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $14.88.
Read Our Latest Report on El Pollo Loco
Institutional Inflows and Outflows
Several large investors have recently bought and sold shares of LOCO. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. boosted its position in 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 purchasing an additional 502,378 shares during the last quarter. Fund 1 Investments LLC increased its position in shares of El Pollo Loco by 193.4% during the 4th 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 last quarter. Millennium Management LLC raised its stake in shares of El Pollo Loco by 197.4% during 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. Sei Investments Co. raised its stake in shares of El Pollo Loco by 203.8% during the 1st quarter. Sei Investments Co. now owns 635,468 shares of the restaurant operator's stock worth $8,808,000 after purchasing an additional 426,320 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Hillsdale Investment Management Inc. raised its stake in shares of El Pollo Loco by 59.0% during the 4th quarter. Hillsdale Investment Management Inc. now owns 571,296 shares of the restaurant operator's stock worth $5,976,000 after purchasing an additional 211,900 shares in the last quarter. 81.28% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.
El Pollo Loco Company Profile
(
Get Free Report)
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.
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