Prudential Financial Inc. Boosts Stock Position in El Pollo Loco Holdings, Inc. (NASDAQ:LOCO)

Prudential Financial Inc. grew its holdings in shares of El Pollo Loco Holdings, Inc. (NASDAQ:LOCO) by 332.2% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 289,739 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock after purchasing an additional 222,704 shares during the quarter. Prudential Financial Inc.’s holdings in El Pollo Loco were worth $3,344,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the company. American Century Companies Inc. increased its holdings in El Pollo Loco by 11.7% during the fourth quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 47,307 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock worth $546,000 after buying an additional 4,949 shares during the last quarter. Quantbot Technologies LP bought a new position in shares of El Pollo Loco during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $70,000. Intech Investment Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of El Pollo Loco during the 4th quarter worth approximately $156,000. William Blair Investment Management LLC raised its holdings in shares of El Pollo Loco by 2.5% in the 4th quarter. William Blair Investment Management LLC now owns 1,406,454 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock worth $16,230,000 after purchasing an additional 34,399 shares during the period. Finally, Monimus Capital Management LP purchased a new position in El Pollo Loco in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $935,000. 81.28% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

El Pollo Loco Price Performance

El Pollo Loco stock opened at $10.42 on Thursday. The firm has a market capitalization of $310.28 million, a P/E ratio of 13.19 and a beta of 1.35. El Pollo Loco Holdings, Inc. has a one year low of $8.17 and a one year 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 business has a fifty day moving average price of $11.27 and a 200-day moving average price of $12.08.

El Pollo Loco (NASDAQ:LOCO) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, March 6th. The restaurant operator reported $0.20 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.14 by $0.06. El Pollo Loco had a return on equity of 10.34% and a net margin of 5.11%. The business had revenue of $114.28 million during 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 EPS for the current year.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

LOCO has been the subject of a number of recent research reports. Craig Hallum initiated coverage on El Pollo Loco in a research report on Tuesday, March 11th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $18.00 target price for the company. StockNews.com lowered El Pollo Loco from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Tuesday. Finally, Benchmark reaffirmed a “hold” rating on shares of El Pollo Loco in a report on Monday, March 10th.

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.