Paloma Partners Management Co Buys New Stake in El Pollo Loco Holdings, Inc. (NASDAQ:LOCO)

Paloma Partners Management Co purchased a new position in shares of El Pollo Loco Holdings, Inc. (NASDAQ:LOCO) in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm purchased 10,884 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock, valued at approximately $106,000.

A number of other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Gladius Capital Management LP bought a new position in shares of El Pollo Loco during the 4th quarter worth approximately $32,000. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC lifted its holdings in shares of El Pollo Loco by 285.7% during the fourth quarter. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC now owns 8,338 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock valued at $74,000 after acquiring an additional 6,176 shares during the period. Tower Research Capital LLC TRC boosted its stake in shares of El Pollo Loco by 1,074.7% in the 4th quarter. Tower Research Capital LLC TRC now owns 10,126 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock valued at $89,000 after purchasing an additional 9,264 shares in the last quarter. Aigen Investment Management LP bought a new stake in shares of El Pollo Loco in the 4th quarter worth about $111,000. Finally, Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. acquired a new stake in shares of El Pollo Loco during the 4th quarter worth about $112,000. 81.28% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities analysts have commented on LOCO shares. StockNews.com lowered shares of El Pollo Loco from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Friday, July 19th. Benchmark reiterated a “hold” rating on shares of El Pollo Loco in a research note on Thursday, May 23rd. Finally, Truist Financial increased their price target on El Pollo Loco from $10.00 to $12.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research report on Friday, May 3rd.

El Pollo Loco Price Performance

NASDAQ:LOCO traded up $0.08 during mid-day trading on Tuesday, reaching $11.86. 50,270 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 288,601. The company has a quick ratio of 0.33, a current ratio of 0.36 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.32. The stock has a market cap of $368.85 million, a PE ratio of 14.67 and a beta of 1.48. El Pollo Loco Holdings, Inc. has a 12 month low of $8.11 and a 12 month high of $11.99. The company has a fifty day moving average of $10.94 and a 200 day moving average of $9.80.

El Pollo Loco (NASDAQ:LOCO) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, May 2nd. The restaurant operator reported $0.22 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.14 by $0.08. El Pollo Loco had a net margin of 5.64% and a return on equity of 10.13%. The business had revenue of $116.15 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $111.09 million. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $0.14 earnings per share. El Pollo Loco’s revenue was up 1.4% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, research analysts anticipate that El Pollo Loco Holdings, Inc. will post 0.71 EPS for the current fiscal year.

El Pollo Loco Company Profile

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.