El Pollo Loco (NASDAQ:LOCO) Major Shareholder Sardar Biglari Sells 13,169 Shares of Stock

El Pollo Loco Holdings, Inc. (NASDAQ:LOCO) major shareholder Sardar Biglari sold 13,169 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, November 4th. The stock was sold at an average price of $16.50, for a total transaction of $217,288.50. Following the transaction, the insider directly owned 3,500,236 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $57,753,894. This trade represents a 0.37% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Major shareholders that own more than 10% of a company’s shares are required to disclose their sales and purchases with the SEC.

Sardar Biglari also recently made the following trade(s):

• On Thursday, November 5th, Sardar Biglari sold 5,984 shares of El Pollo Loco stock. The shares were sold at an average price of $16.50, for a total value of $98,736.00.
• On Friday, October 16th, Sardar Biglari sold 25,556 shares of El Pollo Loco stock. The stock was sold at an average price of $16.50, for a total transaction of $421,674.00.

El Pollo Loco Trading Down 9.6%

NASDAQ LOCO traded down $1.58 during mid-day trading on Friday, reaching $14.88. 703,258 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 285,072. The stock has a market capitalization of $452.80 million, a PE ratio of 12.72 and a beta of 0.85. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.10, a quick ratio of 0.38 and a current ratio of 0.41. El Pollo Loco Holdings, Inc. has a 1-year low of $9.99 and a 1-year high of $17.40. The business’s fifty day simple moving average is $15.01 and its 200 day simple moving average is $14.17.

El Pollo Loco (NASDAQ:LOCO) last released its earnings results on Thursday, November 5th. The restaurant operator reported $0.24 EPS for the quarter, meeting the consensus estimate of $0.24. El Pollo Loco had a return on equity of 10.87% and a net margin of 6.96%. The firm had revenue of $126.31 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $127.03 million. On average, research analysts anticipate that El Pollo Loco Holdings, Inc. will post 0.99 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

El Pollo Loco News Roundup

Here are the key news stories impacting El Pollo Loco this week:

• Positive Sentiment: System-wide same-store sales grew 5% in Q3, while digital sales accounted for 31% of system sales—signs of continued customer demand and digital-channel traction. El Pollo Loco: 3 Key Takeaways for Long-Term Investors
• Positive Sentiment: Management plans to open 25–30 restaurants in 2027 and projects approximately 4.5% comparable-sales growth for 2026, indicating continued expansion and sales momentum. El Pollo Loco expansion and sales outlook
• Neutral Sentiment: Q3 adjusted earnings were $0.24 per share, matching analysts’ consensus. El Pollo Loco Q3 earnings match estimates
• Negative Sentiment: Revenue was $126.31 million, slightly below the $127.03 million analyst estimate. EPS also fell from $0.27 in the year-ago quarter to $0.24, which may weigh on sentiment despite meeting expectations. El Pollo Loco Q3 earnings report

Institutional Trading of El Pollo Loco

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the company. Biglari Capital CORP. bought a new stake in El Pollo Loco during the second quarter valued at $64,064,704. BlackRock Inc. bought a new position in shares of El Pollo Loco in the 2nd quarter worth about $41,716,000. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP boosted its holdings in shares of El Pollo Loco by 0.6% in the 1st quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 2,013,373 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock valued at $27,905,000 after buying an additional 12,072 shares during the period. Tieton Capital Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of El Pollo Loco in the 2nd quarter valued at about $17,535,000. Finally, Sei Investments Co. boosted its holdings in shares of El Pollo Loco by 203.8% in the 1st quarter. Sei Investments Co. now owns 635,468 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock valued at $8,808,000 after buying an additional 426,320 shares during the period. 81.28% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of analysts recently weighed in on the stock. Wall Street Zen cut shares of El Pollo Loco from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Saturday, August 15th. Weiss Ratings upgraded El Pollo Loco from a “hold (c+)” rating to a “buy (b-)” rating in a research note on Friday, October 2nd. DA Davidson upped their price target on El Pollo Loco from $15.00 to $17.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Monday, August 10th. Benchmark lifted their price objective on shares of El Pollo Loco from $18.00 to $21.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, August 7th. Finally, Roth Capital initiated coverage on shares of El Pollo Loco in a report on Friday, October 9th. They set a “buy” rating and a $22.00 price target for the company. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, four have given a Buy rating and four have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $17.30.

El Pollo Loco Company Profile

El Pollo Loco Holdings, Inc (NASDAQ: LOCO) operates and franchises quick-service restaurants specializing in Mexican-inspired food and citrus-marinated, fire-grilled chicken. Its menu includes chicken meals, burritos, tacos, quesadillas, salads, bowls and family meals, along with a variety of sides, beverages and desserts.

The company was founded in 1975 in Guasave, Sinaloa, Mexico, and expanded into the United States in 1980 with its first restaurant in Los Angeles. El Pollo Loco primarily serves customers through restaurants in the western and southwestern United States, particularly in California, Arizona, Nevada, Colorado and Texas.