William Blair Analysts Cut Earnings Estimates for El Pollo Loco Holdings, Inc. (NASDAQ:LOCO)

El Pollo Loco Holdings, Inc. (NASDAQ:LOCO) – Analysts at William Blair decreased their FY2024 earnings estimates for shares of El Pollo Loco in a research note issued on Wednesday, April 24th. William Blair analyst S. Zackfia now forecasts that the restaurant operator will post earnings per share of $0.59 for the year, down from their prior forecast of $0.65. The consensus estimate for El Pollo Loco’s current full-year earnings is $0.65 per share. William Blair also issued estimates for El Pollo Loco’s Q4 2024 earnings at $0.09 EPS and FY2025 earnings at $0.61 EPS.

El Pollo Loco (NASDAQ:LOCO) last released its earnings results on Thursday, March 7th. The restaurant operator reported $0.16 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, hitting the consensus estimate of $0.16. The business had revenue of $112.20 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $109.07 million. El Pollo Loco had a net margin of 5.45% and a return on equity of 9.20%. The company’s quarterly revenue was down 3.2% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the company earned $0.16 earnings per share.

Separately, StockNews.com downgraded shares of El Pollo Loco from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Friday, January 19th.

El Pollo Loco Stock Down 0.4 %

Shares of NASDAQ:LOCO opened at $8.40 on Friday. The company has a current ratio of 0.35, a quick ratio of 0.32 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.34. The company has a fifty day simple moving average of $8.92 and a 200 day simple moving average of $8.81. The firm has a market cap of $261.91 million, a PE ratio of 11.20 and a beta of 1.41. El Pollo Loco has a 12-month low of $8.11 and a 12-month high of $11.02.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On El Pollo Loco

Several institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of LOCO. Fund 1 Investments LLC acquired a new stake in El Pollo Loco in the fourth quarter worth about $7,746,000. AQR Capital Management LLC raised its position in El Pollo Loco by 33.1% in the third quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 541,441 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock worth $4,846,000 after acquiring an additional 134,673 shares in the last quarter. GSA Capital Partners LLP bought a new stake in El Pollo Loco in the third quarter worth about $1,162,000. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. raised its position in El Pollo Loco by 35.6% in the fourth quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. now owns 355,759 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock worth $3,138,000 after acquiring an additional 93,476 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Quest Partners LLC bought a new stake in El Pollo Loco in the fourth quarter worth about $685,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 81.28% of the company’s stock.

About El Pollo Loco

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.