DA Davidson Begins Coverage on El Pollo Loco (NASDAQ:LOCO)

DA Davidson began coverage on shares of El Pollo Loco (NASDAQ:LOCO) in a report issued on Friday, Marketbeat reports. The brokerage set a “neutral” rating and a $11.00 price target on the restaurant operator’s stock.

LOCO has been the subject of a number of other research reports. Weiss Ratings reissued a “hold (c)” rating on shares of El Pollo Loco in a research report on Wednesday, January 21st. Jefferies Financial Group boosted their price objective on shares of El Pollo Loco from $12.00 to $13.50 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, December 15th. Truist Financial increased their price objective on shares of El Pollo Loco from $11.00 to $12.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research report on Thursday, January 8th. Finally, Zacks Research downgraded shares of El Pollo Loco from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Tuesday, December 30th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and five have given a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $13.63.

El Pollo Loco Stock Performance

Shares of LOCO stock opened at $11.00 on Friday. The stock has a fifty day moving average price of $10.77 and a 200 day moving average price of $10.47. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.22, a quick ratio of 0.38 and a current ratio of 0.41. The stock has a market cap of $329.45 million, a PE ratio of 12.50 and a beta of 1.00. El Pollo Loco has a 1 year low of $8.29 and a 1 year high of $11.74.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On El Pollo Loco

A number of institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in LOCO. Tower Research Capital LLC TRC raised its holdings in El Pollo Loco by 85.0% in the second quarter. Tower Research Capital LLC TRC now owns 3,862 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock valued at $43,000 after acquiring an additional 1,774 shares in the last quarter. Kestra Advisory Services LLC acquired a new stake in shares of El Pollo Loco in the 4th quarter valued at about $50,000. BNP Paribas Financial Markets lifted its position in shares of El Pollo Loco by 89.5% during the third quarter. BNP Paribas Financial Markets now owns 5,277 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock worth $51,000 after purchasing an additional 2,493 shares during the last quarter. EMC Capital Management acquired a new position in El Pollo Loco in the second quarter worth about $72,000. Finally, Quinn Opportunity Partners LLC bought a new stake in El Pollo Loco in the third quarter valued at about $97,000. 81.28% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

El Pollo Loco Company Profile

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.