El Pollo Loco Holdings, Inc. (NASDAQ:LOCO) Shares Acquired by William Blair Investment Management LLC

William Blair Investment Management LLC increased its position in shares of El Pollo Loco Holdings, Inc. (NASDAQ:LOCO) by 2.5% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 1,406,454 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock after acquiring an additional 34,399 shares during the period. William Blair Investment Management LLC owned approximately 4.70% of El Pollo Loco worth $16,230,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of LOCO. Point72 DIFC Ltd bought a new stake in shares of El Pollo Loco during the 3rd quarter worth $27,000. Point72 Asia Singapore Pte. Ltd. boosted its position in shares of El Pollo Loco by 91.8% in the 3rd quarter. Point72 Asia Singapore Pte. Ltd. now owns 2,094 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock valued at $29,000 after purchasing an additional 1,002 shares during the period. SG Americas Securities LLC boosted its position in shares of El Pollo Loco by 22.3% in the 4th quarter. SG Americas Securities LLC now owns 10,713 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock valued at $124,000 after purchasing an additional 1,954 shares during the period. Olympiad Research LP purchased a new position in El Pollo Loco in the 4th quarter worth about $130,000. Finally, Centiva Capital LP acquired a new stake in El Pollo Loco during the 3rd quarter worth about $153,000. 81.28% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

El Pollo Loco Trading Up 2.4 %

NASDAQ:LOCO opened at $10.41 on Thursday. The stock has a market cap of $309.98 million, a PE ratio of 13.18 and a beta of 1.50. El Pollo Loco Holdings, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $8.17 and a fifty-two week high of $14.25. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.30, a current ratio of 0.31 and a quick ratio of 0.29. The stock’s 50-day moving average is $11.46 and its two-hundred day moving average is $12.28.

El Pollo Loco (NASDAQ:LOCO) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, March 6th. The restaurant operator reported $0.20 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.14 by $0.06. El Pollo Loco had a net margin of 5.11% and a return on equity of 10.34%. The firm had revenue of $114.28 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $113.19 million. As a group, equities research analysts forecast that El Pollo Loco Holdings, Inc. will post 0.83 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

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

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.