El Pollo Loco Holdings, Inc. (LOCO) AI Stock Analysis

El Pollo Loco Holdings, Inc., operating through its subsidiary El Pollo Loco, Inc., is a quick-service restaurant company known for its signature flame-grilled chicken dishes. The Costa Mesa, California-based company develops, franchises, licenses, and operates restaurants under the El Pollo Loco brand across the United States. In addition to its domestic locations, the company licenses restaurants in the Philippines. Founded in 1975 and formerly known as Chicken Acquisition Corp. before its April 2014 name change, the company employs 4,000 people and focuses on food freshness, culinary innovation, sustainable practices, and community initiatives.

Revenue grew from $454.4M in FY2021 to $490.0M in FY2025, reflecting a 5-year revenue CAGR of 2.8% from FY2020 to FY2025. Annual revenue expanded 3.4% in FY2022, dipped 0.3% in FY2023, rose 0.9% in FY2024, and increased 3.6% in FY2025. Over the same span, gross margin widened from 21.8% in FY2021 to 28.6% in FY2025, while net income moved from $29.1M to $26.5M. In the trailing twelve months, revenue totaled $500.8M with a profit margin of 7.0% and an operating margin of 9.9%. For the quarter ended June 30, 2026, quarterly revenue grew 3.0% year over year and quarterly earnings grew 79.2%.

As of June 30, 2026, El Pollo Loco held $13.3M in cash and short-term investments against total debt of $219.4M, resulting in net debt of $206.1M. Shareholders' equity was $317.0M alongside total assets of $618.8M, yielding a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.69 and a current ratio of 0.41. In FY2025, operating cash flow reached $48.1M and free cash flow was $25.4M. Capital expenditures totaled $22.6M, while share buybacks accounted for $1.8M, contributing to a 5-year share count reduction of 17.3%.

At a last close of $16.34 on October 16, 2026, El Pollo Loco had a market capitalization of $497.3M and an enterprise value of $640.4M. The stock traded at a trailing P/E of 14.0x and a forward P/E of 14.0x, compared to medians of 18.0x and 14.1x, respectively, for its US-listed Consumer Cyclical peers. Its EV to EBITDA ratio stood at 9.2x, below the peer group median of 11.1x, while its price-to-sales multiple of 1.0x exceeded the peer median of 0.7x. Over the past year, LOCO returned 77.2%, outperforming the S&P 500 (SPY) return of 16.8%, though its 5-year return of 22.6% trailed the index's 83.0%.

Wall Street coverage consists of 5 Strong Buy and 2 Hold ratings, with zero Buy, Sell, or Strong Sell ratings. The mean price target is $20.58, representing an upside of 26.0% from the last close of $16.34. For the fiscal year ending December 31, 2026, consensus estimates project revenue of $504.1M and EPS of $1.03, representing 4.8% earnings growth. For the following fiscal year, 6 analysts anticipate revenue of $525.2M and EPS of $1.11. El Pollo Loco has beaten EPS estimates in each of the last 4 quarters, and its next earnings report is scheduled for November 5, 2026.

This page is an AI-written research summary of El Pollo Loco Holdings, Inc. (LOCO). The text was generated on October 30, 2026 from Quotelinks data as of October 16, 2026 (company profile, annual results, latest balance sheet, valuation, price performance and analyst estimates). An automatic check rejects any draft that contains a figure not found in that data. It is not investment advice; verify figures on the linked tabs before making decisions.

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