Aquatic Capital Management LLC Takes $107,000 Position in El Pollo Loco Holdings, Inc. (NASDAQ:LOCO)

Aquatic Capital Management LLC purchased a new position in El Pollo Loco Holdings, Inc. (NASDAQ:LOCO) in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor purchased 9,312 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock, valued at approximately $107,000.

A number of other large investors also recently bought and sold shares of LOCO. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased its position in shares of El Pollo Loco by 11.0% in the fourth quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 456,432 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock valued at $5,267,000 after buying an additional 45,134 shares in the last quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. increased its holdings in El Pollo Loco by 372.6% in the 3rd quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 70,409 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock worth $951,000 after acquiring an additional 55,510 shares in the last quarter. First Eagle Investment Management LLC raised its position in El Pollo Loco by 54.0% during the fourth quarter. First Eagle Investment Management LLC now owns 453,422 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock worth $5,232,000 after acquiring an additional 159,000 shares during the period. Janney Montgomery Scott LLC raised its position in El Pollo Loco by 89.6% during the fourth quarter. Janney Montgomery Scott LLC now owns 84,247 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock worth $972,000 after acquiring an additional 39,824 shares during the period. Finally, AlphaQuest LLC lifted its holdings in El Pollo Loco by 17,165.8% during the fourth quarter. AlphaQuest LLC now owns 27,798 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock valued at $321,000 after purchasing an additional 27,637 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 81.28% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research analysts recently weighed in on the stock. Craig Hallum initiated coverage on shares of El Pollo Loco in a research report on Tuesday, March 11th. They set a “buy” rating and a $18.00 price target for the company. Benchmark reiterated a “hold” rating on shares of El Pollo Loco in a research note on Monday, March 10th. Finally, StockNews.com downgraded El Pollo Loco from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Friday.

El Pollo Loco Stock Performance

NASDAQ:LOCO opened at $8.89 on Tuesday. The company has a market cap of $267.21 million, a P/E ratio of 11.25 and a beta of 1.11. El Pollo Loco Holdings, Inc. has a twelve month low of $8.29 and a twelve month high of $14.25. The company’s 50-day moving average price is $10.04 and its 200-day moving average price is $11.38. The company has a current ratio of 0.31, a quick ratio of 0.29 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.30.

El Pollo Loco (NASDAQ:LOCO) last released its earnings results on Thursday, May 1st. The restaurant operator reported $0.19 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.20 by ($0.01). The business had revenue of $119.18 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $118.20 million. El Pollo Loco had a return on equity of 10.34% and a net margin of 5.11%. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 2.6% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the business earned $0.22 earnings per share. On average, sell-side analysts forecast that El Pollo Loco Holdings, Inc. will post 0.83 earnings per share 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.