William Blair Reduces Earnings Estimates for El Pollo Loco

El Pollo Loco Holdings, Inc. (NASDAQ:LOCO) – Analysts at William Blair reduced their FY2025 EPS estimates for shares of El Pollo Loco in a research note issued to investors on Wednesday, November 19th. William Blair analyst S. Zackfia now anticipates that the restaurant operator will earn $0.96 per share for the year, down from their prior forecast of $0.97. The consensus estimate for El Pollo Loco’s current full-year earnings is $0.83 per share. William Blair also issued estimates for El Pollo Loco’s Q4 2025 earnings at $0.22 EPS and FY2026 earnings at $1.01 EPS.

El Pollo Loco (NASDAQ:LOCO) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, October 30th. The restaurant operator reported $0.27 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.23 by $0.04. The business had revenue of $121.52 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $123.57 million. El Pollo Loco had a return on equity of 10.15% and a net margin of 5.39%.

Several other equities analysts have also recently commented on the company. Zacks Research upgraded El Pollo Loco from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Monday, November 3rd. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a “hold (c)” rating on shares of El Pollo Loco in a report on Wednesday, October 8th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, one has given a Buy rating and two have given a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $18.00.

El Pollo Loco Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ LOCO opened at $10.47 on Monday. The company has a quick ratio of 0.38, a current ratio of 0.41 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.22. El Pollo Loco has a fifty-two week low of $8.29 and a fifty-two week high of $13.14. The business has a 50 day moving average price of $9.88 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $10.24. The firm has a market cap of $313.58 million, a PE ratio of 11.90 and a beta of 1.02.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On El Pollo Loco

Several large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Tower Research Capital LLC TRC increased its stake in El Pollo Loco by 85.0% during the second quarter. Tower Research Capital LLC TRC now owns 3,862 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock valued at $43,000 after purchasing an additional 1,774 shares during the last quarter. CWM LLC boosted its holdings in shares of El Pollo Loco by 31.3% in the 2nd quarter. CWM LLC now owns 4,229 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock valued at $47,000 after buying an additional 1,008 shares during the period. BNP Paribas Financial Markets grew its position in shares of El Pollo Loco by 89.5% during the 3rd quarter. BNP Paribas Financial Markets now owns 5,277 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock valued at $51,000 after buying an additional 2,493 shares during the last quarter. EMC Capital Management bought a new stake in shares of El Pollo Loco during the 2nd quarter valued at about $72,000. Finally, Quantbot Technologies LP raised its stake in El Pollo Loco by 27.3% during the first quarter. Quantbot Technologies LP now owns 7,722 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock worth $80,000 after acquiring an additional 1,658 shares during the period. 81.28% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

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.