Insider Buying: Portillo’s (NASDAQ:PTLO) Director Buys 286,000 Shares of Stock

Portillo’s Inc. (NASDAQ:PTLO) Director Eugene Lee, Jr. purchased 286,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Friday, March 13th. The shares were purchased at an average price of $5.18 per share, for a total transaction of $1,481,480.00. Following the transaction, the director directly owned 416,250 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,156,175. This represents a 219.58% increase in their ownership of the stock. The acquisition was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link.

Portillo’s Price Performance

PTLO stock traded up $0.17 during mid-day trading on Friday, hitting $5.33. 1,634,217 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,379,447. The business has a fifty day moving average price of $5.46 and a 200 day moving average price of $5.53. Portillo’s Inc. has a 12 month low of $4.41 and a 12 month high of $13.55. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.48, a current ratio of 0.27 and a quick ratio of 0.22. The stock has a market capitalization of $402.47 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of 19.11, a PEG ratio of 1.85 and a beta of 1.75.

Portillo’s (NASDAQ:PTLO) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, February 24th. The company reported $0.08 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.05 by $0.03. The company had revenue of $185.75 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $185.50 million. Portillo’s had a return on equity of 3.93% and a net margin of 2.64%.Portillo’s’s revenue for the quarter was up .6% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the firm posted $0.17 EPS. On average, sell-side analysts anticipate that Portillo’s Inc. will post 0.35 EPS for the current year.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Portillo’s

Large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. PNC Financial Services Group Inc. raised its stake in shares of Portillo’s by 135.8% during the second quarter. PNC Financial Services Group Inc. now owns 2,596 shares of the company’s stock valued at $30,000 after acquiring an additional 1,495 shares during the last quarter. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. grew its stake in shares of Portillo’s by 5.9% in the first quarter. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. now owns 32,550 shares of the company’s stock worth $387,000 after purchasing an additional 1,808 shares during the last quarter. CWM LLC increased its holdings in Portillo’s by 37.6% during the 4th quarter. CWM LLC now owns 7,216 shares of the company’s stock valued at $33,000 after purchasing an additional 1,973 shares during the period. Lakewood Asset Management LLC raised its position in Portillo’s by 1.5% during the 3rd quarter. Lakewood Asset Management LLC now owns 137,065 shares of the company’s stock valued at $884,000 after purchasing an additional 2,016 shares during the last quarter. Finally, ProShare Advisors LLC grew its position in shares of Portillo’s by 20.1% in the 4th quarter. ProShare Advisors LLC now owns 12,188 shares of the company’s stock worth $55,000 after buying an additional 2,043 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 98.34% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities analysts recently commented on PTLO shares. DA Davidson began coverage on shares of Portillo’s in a report on Friday, March 6th. They set a “neutral” rating and a $5.50 target price on the stock. Piper Sandler upped their price target on shares of Portillo’s from $7.00 to $8.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday, January 16th. Wolfe Research began coverage on Portillo’s in a report on Monday. They issued a “peer perform” rating on the stock. Weiss Ratings reissued a “sell (d+)” rating on shares of Portillo’s in a research note on Monday, December 22nd. Finally, Morgan Stanley set a $7.00 target price on Portillo’s in a report on Tuesday, January 20th. Three analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, nine have given a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, Portillo’s currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $7.50.

Portillo’s Company Profile

Portillo’s, Inc operates a fast‐casual restaurant chain best known for its Chicago‐style menu, featuring Italian beef sandwiches, Chicago‐style hot dogs, char‐grilled burgers, salads, crinkle‐cut fries and hand‐spun milkshakes. In addition to its signature sandwiches and dogs, the company offers a selection of desserts—including its famous chocolate cake and frozen custard—as well as catering services designed to bring its Midwestern flavors to corporate and social events.

The company was founded in 1963 by Dick Portillo, who opened the first Portillo’s in Villa Park, Illinois.