El Pollo Loco (NASDAQ:LOCO) Share Price Crosses Above Fifty Day Moving Average on Insider Selling

El Pollo Loco Holdings, Inc. (NASDAQ:LOCO) passed above its 50-day moving average during trading on Monday following insider buying activity. The stock has a 50-day moving average of $15.01 and traded as high as $15.80. El Pollo Loco shares last traded at $15.77, with a volume of 519,701 shares changing hands.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities analysts have recently commented on the stock. Wall Street Zen lowered shares of El Pollo Loco from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Saturday, August 15th. Weiss Ratings raised shares of El Pollo Loco from a “hold (c+)” rating to a “buy (b-)” rating in a report on Friday, October 2nd. Benchmark upped their target price on shares of El Pollo Loco from $18.00 to $21.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, August 7th. DA Davidson upped their target price on shares of El Pollo Loco from $15.00 to $17.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Monday, August 10th. Finally, Roth Capital began coverage on El Pollo Loco in a research report on Friday, October 9th. They set a “buy” rating and a $22.00 price target on the stock. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, four have given a Buy rating and four have issued a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $17.30.

El Pollo Loco Stock Up 6.0%

The company has a market cap of $479.88 million, a P/E ratio of 13.71 and a beta of 0.85. The stock has a 50-day moving average of $15.01 and a two-hundred day moving average of $14.21. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.10, a quick ratio of 0.38 and a current ratio of 0.41.

El Pollo Loco (NASDAQ:LOCO) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, November 5th. The restaurant operator reported $0.24 EPS for the quarter, meeting analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.24. The business had revenue of $126.31 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $127.03 million. El Pollo Loco had a net margin of 6.96% and a return on equity of 10.87%. On average, research analysts anticipate that El Pollo Loco Holdings, Inc. will post 0.97 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On El Pollo Loco

Hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the business. Signaturefd LLC raised its position in El Pollo Loco by 419.9% in the 3rd quarter. Signaturefd LLC now owns 2,563 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock worth $37,000 after purchasing an additional 2,070 shares during the period. Legal & General Group Plc bought a new stake in El Pollo Loco in the second quarter worth $48,000. State of Wyoming bought a new stake in El Pollo Loco in the first quarter worth $88,000. Hsbc Holdings PLC purchased a new stake in El Pollo Loco during the second quarter valued at about $200,000. Finally, Man Group plc purchased a new stake in El Pollo Loco during the second quarter valued at about $253,000. 81.28% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

El Pollo Loco Company Profile

El Pollo Loco Holdings, Inc (NASDAQ: LOCO) operates and franchises quick-service restaurants specializing in Mexican-inspired food and citrus-marinated, fire-grilled chicken. Its menu includes chicken meals, burritos, tacos, quesadillas, salads, bowls and family meals, along with a variety of sides, beverages and desserts.

The company was founded in 1975 in Guasave, Sinaloa, Mexico, and expanded into the United States in 1980 with its first restaurant in Los Angeles. El Pollo Loco primarily serves customers through restaurants in the western and southwestern United States, particularly in California, Arizona, Nevada, Colorado and Texas.